
i T X6 o( 



CoBiigtoK?. 



COPYRIGHT DEPOSm 



SAVE IT FOR WINTER 



Save It For Winter 

Modern Methods of Canning, Dehydrating 

Preserving and Storing Vegetables 

and Fruit for Winter Use 

With Comments on 

THE BEST THINGS TO GROW FOR SAVING 
AND WHEN AND HOW TO GROW THEM 



BY 

FREDERICK FRYE ROCKWELL 

Author of "Around the Year in the Oarden," "Home Vegetable Gardening," etc. 

ILLUSTRATED 




NEW YORK 

FREDERICK A. STOKES COMPANY 

PUBLISHERS 



,\ 



-^^^"l 



Copyright, 1918, hy 
Frederick A. Stokes Company 



All Rights Reserved 



JUL 22 !9I8 



©a.A499822 



■i^L ^- 






ACKNOWLEDGMENT 



1^ In the preparation of this little book I have 

P found much assistance in the bulletins and 

pamphlets prepared by the Department of 
Agriculture, the National War Garden Com- 
mission, the various Agricultural Colleges, 
especially of California and Pennsylvania, 
and the helpful literature of Ball Brothers 
Manufacturing Company, The Kerr Man- 
ufacturing Company (** Economy *' jars), The 
Southern Canner and Evaporator Company, 
The Home Canner Company, The Weis Fiber 
Manufacturing Company, etc. 

The Author. 



CONTENTS 

CHAPTER PAGE 

Preface ix 

I Why You Should Keep It for Winter 1 

II Why Food "Spoils*' and How to 

"Keep" It 6 

What causes it to "spoil"; how to prevent 
its spoiling; various methods; canning; dry- 
ing; pickUng and preserving; storing. 

III What Can Be Saved 16 

How to get it in the best condition; vege- 
tables and fruits available for keeping for 
winter; how to get them in the best condi- 
tion; when to plant and what varieties to 
use. Planting table. 

IV Canning 43 

The different methods; glossary of terms; 
different types of containers; details of the 
work; detailed instructions for individual 
vegetables and fruits. Time tables. 

V Drying and Dehydrating .... 85 

New use of terms; dehydrating methods; 
drying methods; containers; details of the 
work; detailed instructions for individual 
vegetables and fruits. Time table, 
vii 



viii CONTENTS 

CHAPTER PAGE 

VI Pickles, Preserves and Jellies . . 119 
Different types; instructions for individual 
vegetables and fruits. Recipes. 

VII Storing 137 

In general; providing storage quarters; de- 
tailed instructions for individual vegetables 
and fruits. 

VIII Equipment and Accessories . . . 167 
Outfits of various kinds; washers; slicers; 
cookers; cans; jars; paper containers; knives; 
labels; etc.; etc. 

IX Conclusion 195 

How to plant the summer's work for best re- 
sults; systematic work; suggestions on co- 
operation. A little look ahead. 

Index 203 



PREFACE 

What is the most important thing in the 
world? 

Did you ever stop to think that it is noth- 
ing more nor less than saving food for win- 
ter? 

Upon our ability to keep food for future 
use is built the whole fabric of civilization. 
With the science, or the art — for it partakes 
of both — of food preservation wiped out of 
existence, that civilization would have to fall, 
and the races of mankind revert to nomadic 
tribes scouring the earth ^s surface for such 
food as Nature provided, and starving when 
they could not find it. 

All industry is based upon saved food. 
Only when one man can produce and keep 
food enough for himself and for some one 
else whose labor is devoted to the making of 
other things, can there be any beginning of 

ix 



X Preface 

commerce and industry, even in crude forms ; 
and our tremendously complicated industry 
and social system of the present day depends 
wholly upon one man^s being able to grow 
and save the food for many men. 

Even with our improved machinery and 
improved agricultural methods, however, 
there is a limit to the number of men whom 
one man can possibly support. When enough 
persons have been removed from food pro- 
duction, and enough of the stored food of the 
world has been consumed and destroyed, we 
must inevitably reach a point where the world 
will face starvation. How far off that point 
is no one can say with certainty ; but now, in 
the third year of the Great War, it is nearer 
than it has been at any time in modem his- 
tory — so near that a large part of the world 
already faces chronic hunger. And at vari- 
ous local points many thousands will die of 
actual starvation during the coming year; it 
is already a physical impossibility to get 
food to them all in time to prevent that. And 
starvation for the world is certainly so near 



Preface xi 

that a year of poor crops may precipitate it 
among us, even here in our own land where, 
although we have not produced very good 
average yields per acre, our farmers have 
been producing more per capita than those 
of any other country. 

Hunger is Emperor! 

After all is said and done, despite the pur- 
ple and ermine trappings of royalty, the clat- 
tering scabbards of stalking generals, and the 
subversive glitter of banker's gold. He, half- 
shod and in rags and tatters, is revealed as 
the autocrat supreme, unmaking autocracies 
— as the Great Dictator, directing, from gar- 
ret and gutter, the destinies of empires ! 

Hunger is Emperor, and his kingdom is 
anarchy. His purposes are accomplished not 
by evolution but by revolutions. His real 
entry into the war will bring the tides of bat- 
tle rolling back from the far-flung fronts to 
the capitals from which they started. Then 
order must fall before chaos. The world will 
stand on the brink of the chasm of the past, 



xii Preface 

facing the possibility of slipping genera- 
tions backward. 

Thus there are indeed pregnant possibili- 
ties that the Great War may be succeeded by 
a greater war, a war of Humanity against 
Famine. 

The saving of food therefore becomes of 
more importance than ever before, from 
every point of view : as a personal necessity ; 
as the most commonsense kind of patriotism; 
and as a social obligation. The individual 
may feel that the few quarts of beans or of 
tomatoes saved for winter use that would or- 
dinarily be allowed to go to waste, or the few 
square feet of ground which he may plant es- 
pecially for winter use, make but a very triv- 
ial effort toward stemming this tide of star- 
vation. But it is only by the continued ef- 
forts of thousands of individuals that the 
menace of hunger can be averted, and each 
one who does his or her part is contributing 
to the common cause. 

Every jar of canned goods or preserves put 
up, every pound of dehydrated vegetables or 



Preface xiii 

fruit, will be not only a help to the home bud- 
get, but mean an extra portion for some 
hungry family across the seas. 

F. F. R. 

Fordhood Farms, 
May, 1918. 



SAVE IT FOR WINTER 



SAVE IT FOR WINTER 

CHAPTER I 

WHY YOU SHOULD KEEP IT FOR WINTER 

Does it pay to save summer foodstuffs — 
vegetables and fruits — for winter? 

Does it really pay to do it — or has all the 
recent agitation for the canning and drying 
of vegetables and fruits been merely a war 
measure made necessary by the unusual con- 
ditions which exist throughout the world and 
therefore of little importance once the great 
conflict ends'? 

To any one who has had much experience 
with the real modern methods of keeping food 
for future use there can be no doubt that it 
does pay, and pay handsomely. The new 
methods require very much less time and in- 
volve much less work than those which have 

been in general use up to the present time. 

1 



Save It for Winter 



The practice of both canning and drying has 
been practically revolutionized within the 
last few years. The new methods compared 
with those formerly in vogue are so simple 
that many persons have been inclined to 
doubt their efficacy until they became con- 
vinced by actual trial. The saving of food 
by these methods does pay even those who 
are located in cities and have not the facili- 
ties for producing the vegetables and fruit 
they can so easily save for winter. 

Saving food for winter pays because it pre- 
vents waste. The surplus from the home 
garden, or the cheap products of a glutted 
summer market, may be kept for the time 
when vegetable food is scarce and high in 
price. 

Saving food for winter pays because it en- 
ables you to make use of your garden, if you 
have one, to help support your family dur- 
ing twelve months of the year instead of only 
six or seven. The commonly held idea that 
these methods of saving foodstuff apply 
wholly or chiefly to surplus garden products 



You Should Keep It for Winter 3 

is erroneous. To take full advantage of the 
benefits which food-saving makes available 
one should grow crops especially for this pur- 
pose. This not only makes the work easier 
but permits making the most profitable sec- 
ond use of the ground occupied by the sum- 
mer garden and allows one to plan systemati- 
cally for the winter's requirements instead 
of just having what is * * left over ' ' from the 
summer garden. 

Saving food for winter pays because it 
furnishes a healthier diet. Home saved prod- 
ucts, if carefully prepared, will be better than 
those which you are likely to be able to buy, 
and so much cheaper that a greater propor- 
tion of them in the daily menu will be used. 
We Americans have been, next to the Austra- 
lians, the greatest meat eaters in the world 
— not because so much meat constituted a 
healthy diet but because, owing to our prairie 
ranges and other cheap sources of produc- 
tion, meat was more inexpensive to get and 
easier to procure and prepare than vege- 
tables. Times have changed; meat in Amer- 



4 Save It for Winter 

ica, in comparison with vegetable products, 
will never be so cheap again. Those who pre- 
pare to take advantage of the cheap vege- 
table supplies of summer, whether bought or 
home grown, will be on the road to more 
hygienic as well as more economical living. 

Saving food for winter pays because the 
actual expense of preparing and keeping 
vegetable food for this purpose has been 
greatly decreased by the new method, in spite 
of the higher prices of many of the things 
used. Dehydrated vegetables of many kinds 
will largely take the place of canned vege- 
tables. This means a tremendous saving in 
the cost of containers and in the amount of 
space required to keep the products. Im- 
proved utensils have cut down the labor re- 
quired in preparing and putting up the food. 
The percentage of food lost by ** spoiling'* 
has been cut from a very considerable amount 
to almost nothing. 

And, above all, saving food for winter will 
pay, while the world-wide holocaust of the 
present war continues, with its consequent 



You Should Keep It for Winter 5 



bringing of famine conditions to millions of 
people, because it is a duty to one^s country, 
to humanity in general, which cannot with a 
clear conscience be shirked. Inasmuch as you 
can save food, even though it be but a single 
pound, you have contributed directly to the 
well-being of one of the starving fellow-citi- 
zens of the world ! 



CHAPTEE II 

WHY FOOD ''spoils^' AND HOW TO '*KEEP'' IT 

As soon as vegetable food products mature 
or are gathered for market or for the home 
table they begin to deteriorate, and in most 
cases within a very short time become de- 
cayed, shriveled, or otherwise unfit for use as 
food. 

Why does food spoil? 

The answer is to be found in that now well- 
khown household word — *' bacteria/' 

Bacteria, or vegetable molds, in such forms 
that they are not visible to the naked eye, 
are ever lying in wait to attack the surface 
or the tissues of every form of vegetable 
life immediately the latter dies or is killed 
by harvesting. Some vegetables, however, 
naturally go through a dormant period after 
actual growth ceases, before their natural 
cycle of life is completed. These things. 



Why Food ''Spoils' 



which are generally termed *^ non-perishable'' 
vegetables or fruits, are, under favorable con- 
ditions, more or less immune for a certain 
length of time from the attacks of the destruc- 
tive bacteria. Even these food products, how- 
ever, will quickly *^ spoil,'' either as the re- 
sult of being attacked by bacteria or through 
partial evaporation of the moisture which 
they normally contain, if the conditions un- 
der which they are kept are not similar to 
those provided by Mother Nature in the plan 
of existence which she has worked out for 
them. 

How, then, are our foods to be kept from 
spoiling? 

Our first problem, of course, is to find some 
means of keeping the destructive bacteria 
away from the product which they are wait- 
ing to attack and destroy. This can be done 
either by keeping them away by a physical 
barrier from the product, or by furnishing 
conditions which are unfavorable to the ex- 
istence of the bacteria themselves. In the 
case of non-perishable products such as po- 



8 Save It for Winter 

tatoes, many root crops, and some fruits, we 
must supply conditions similar to those which 
nature intended and which will discourage 
the development of the obnoxious bacteria. 

By what means may these results be accom- 
plished? 

There are, to use common terms, four meth- 
ods of accomplishing these results : First, by 
canning; second, by drying; third, by pick- 
ling or preserving ; fourth, by storing. All 
of these words are familiar household terms 
to the layman; yet, without a doubt, not one 
out of ten persons who use these terms ever 
stops to think how the various methods ac- 
complish what they do accomplish, making it 
possible for us to eat three square meals for 
three hundred and sixty-five days in every 
year. Any one who is interested in saving 
food should have a working knowledge of the 
general principles upon which the ordinary 
methods of saving food are based. Such 
knowledge should be had not merely as a mat- 
ter of information but because it is of prac- 
tical use in enabling one to do the work Intel- 



Why Food "SpoiW' 9 

ligently and accurately, thus assuring better 
results. 

CANNING 

By *^ canning'' we mean the saving of fruits 
or vegetables for future use by placing the 
product in a container of tin, glass, or other 
material, which is afterward hermetically 
sealed. The product *^ keeps," because the 
bacteria, which would otherwise cause it to 
spoil, are actually prevented from getting at 
it. If we merely put it in cans or jars and 
filled it up, however, millions of the bacteria 
would be sealed up with it and continue their 
nefarious work. Therefore, before sealing it 
up, it is necessary to destroy all the bacteria 
already in the product. This is done by heat- 
ing to a certain temperature for a required 
length of time. The bacteria already in the 
food, when sufficiently cooked to be de- 
stroyed, have become harmless. This may 
not sound particularly appetizing, but it is 
what actually happens. The food has been 
** sterilized," and if it can be sealed up be- 



10 Save It for Winter 

fore any other bacteria can get to it, it will 
be safe to keep for an indefinite period until 
wanted for use. 

These facts have been known for a long 
time. Eecently, however, a further fact has 
been discovered which has very greatly sim- 
plified the different methods of canning. For 
generations housewives have known that corn 
was very hard to keep even if carefully 
canned. Corn and tomatoes put up together, 
however, keep very well. The reason for this, 
as we have now come to know, is that the add 
in the mixture, supplied by the tomatoes, 
makes living conditions Avhich the bacteria 
refuse to tolerate. Experiments proved that 
they expired much more quickly in, and were 
easily kept out of, a slightly acid solution. As 
a result, the modern practice of putting a lit- 
tle acid, such as lemon juice, with vegetables 
which are hard to keep, has resulted in the 
saving of a tremendous amount of work in 
canning these things and a great saving in 
the amounts lost by ^^ spoilage'' after can- 
ning. 



Why Food ''Spoils' 11 

DKYING 

Most vegetables and fruits in their normal 
condition are made up very largely of water. 
Many of them contain 80 to 90 per cent, of 
plain ordinary H2O. A pumpkin is actually 
more fluid than milk — if its cell-structure 
were the same as that of milk it would be 
served at the table in a pitcher and poured 
out into glasses ! Now these little bacteria 
which I have referred to — and will have to 
mention again many times in the following 
chapters — cannot increase and multiply un- 
less their surroundings contain a certain 
amount of moisture. 

Long ago our ancestors, when they still 
wore callouses instead of cordovans on their 
feet, and furs around their loins instead of 
around their necks, discovered that certain 
fruits put on hot stones in the sun or strung 
up on strings to dry, could be saved for win- 
ter. Of course they knew not the reason for 
this, but the fact was of very practical im- 
portance. Up until the days of our grand- 



12 Save It for Winter 

mothers, fruits generally and a few vegeta- 
bles were **sun dried,'' or dried over the 
stove, or ''evaporated," very generally. 

Then canning came in, and as these dry 
products were hard to prepare and not wholly 
satisfactory, evaporating became almost a 
lost art in the home. In certain dry climates 
it continues to be used extensively in the 
preparations of certain fruits for market. 
But by the new methods vegetables and fruits 
of almost all kinds can be dried easily, 
quickly, and cleanly in the home with inex- 
pensive apparatus. There is every indication 
that within the next few years dried vegeta- 
bles will again be as common in every home 
as canned vegetables. By the new methods 
we take the moisture out with a continuous 
current of heated air, called the process of 
' ' dehydrating, ' ' which in plain English means 
''taking out the water'' — and thus frustrate 
the diabolical purposes of the destructive 
bacteria which would otherwise claim our 
vegetables and fruits as their natural prey. 



Whij Food ''Spoils'' 18 

PICKLING AND PEESERVING 

Fruits, vegetables, or nuts to be ** pickled'' 
are put into an acid or saline solution. Pick- 
led products ^^keep'' merely because the bac- 
teria, which constitute the army of General 
Decay, refuse to live and have their being in 
the brine or acid saturated tissues of the 
product. Those who are familiar with the 
old fashioned Dill Pickle, hooked out of an 
open barrel and handed out on a piece of 
brown wrapping paper, can in this instance 
sympathize with the bacteria! But there 
are good pickles, mighty good pickles. No 
supply of things to be kept for winter can 
be considered complete without a generous 
proportion. And, personally, I have never 
been able to understand why it is impossible 
to get manufactured pickles which are as 
good as those made at home, but such seems 
to be the case. 

Sugar, like salt and acid, is used to help 
to preserve certain fruits and vegetables by 
making a condition that is unfavorable to 



14 Save It foi^ Winter 

the growth of destructive micro-organisms. 
It is the '* common-denominator'' in most jel- 
lies, preserves, and conserves. In many- 
cases, however, much more sugar is used than 
is really required. This not only makes an 
unnecessary expense, but also a product that 
is insipid or oversweet, where a much more 
appetizing one might just as well be obtained. 
The use of perfectly fresh fruit and of sani- 
tary methods in putting up the product will 
help materially in cutting down the amount 
of sugar necessary. 

STOKING 

Vegetables to be ** stored'' for winter are 
merely put where they will be under condi- 
tions, as nearly as possible, like those Nature 
intended them to have, and where the pres- 
ence of bacteria will be discouraged, and the 
evaporation of water from the plant tissues, 
causing them to wilt or shrivel, will be as far 
as possible prevented. Storerooms, cellars 
and vegetable-pits are familiar to most peo- 
ple. It is, however, surprising how little use 



Wh2j Food ''Spoils'' 15 

is made of some of the simple methods of 
keeping vegetables over winter where there 
is not a storeroom or a good cellar. These 
may be found described in detail in the chap- 
ter on the storing of vegetables and fruits. 
And so, after all, the general principles in- 
volved in the matter of saving food for fu- 
ture use are not complicated, and the work 
by modem methods is not difficult. If you 
would live more cheaply and more healthfully 
than you have heretofore, *^save it for win- 
ter!'' 



CHAPTER III 

WHAT CAN BE SAVED 

What range of variety can we have in the 
garden which is grown for storing in the cel- 
lar and on the pantry shelves for winter? 

With the old methods which were used al- 
most exclusively until within the last few 
years, the number of vegetables and fruits 
which could be conveniently put up with any 
degree of certainty that they would not 
^'spoiP' was quite limited. 

With the newer methods, however, sug- 
gested in the previous chapter and described 
in detail in those to follow, and by using all of 
the methods of food saving outlined, it is pos- 
sible without any elaborate equipment or ex- 
pert training in the work, to save for winter 
almost the complete range of vegetables and 
fruits which we enjoy from the summer gar- 
den. 

16 




4) (D 

^ a 



"Bi 



0) a; 



> o 

rr. 



m 

^ o; 

II 

^^ 
^■f 

So 

^ a; o 

^ C 

'-' tC ■£ 



00 



^•5 



What Can Be Saved 17 

There are, of course, many conditions 
which affect the success of the food saving 
enterprise in any particular case. Some 
vegetables may be kept very easily and others 
are very difficult to keep; for this and for 
other reasons no general rules for either can- 
ning, drying or storing will apply. The first 
thing which any one who is beginning the 
practice of food saving should thoroughly 
understand is that directions must be fol- 
lowed carefully. 

Another factor affecting success is the con- 
dition of the product to be saved. The old 
rule of procedure that, ^'We eat what we 
can and what we can't we can*' — or as the 
Englishman repeated it, ^^We eat what we 
can and what we can't we tin" — cannot be 
counted upon if one wishes either satisfac- 
tory quality in the product put up or full 
success in keeping the things that are put 
up. In this chapter are mentioned most of 
the fruits and vegetables which ordinarily can 
be satisfactorily kept for winter. 



18 Save It for Winter 

GETTING THE KAW MATERIALS RIGHT 

All the products used for canning, drying, 
or storing should be in perfect condition. 

Neglect in this particular is the cause of 
more trouble and loss than probably any 
other one thing in connection with keeping 
food for future use. For the best results it is 
necessary not only to have products which are 
absolutely free from decay, but to have those 
that are at just the right stage of develop- 
ment or ripeness to be used to give a product 
of superior quality. Much of the prejudice 
against canned vegetables and fruit has been 
due to the fact that the general source of 
raw materials was surpluses from the gar- 
den. These surpluses were not made use of 
for canning or for drying until they had 
passed their prime, so far as table quality 
was concerned, and had begun to deteriorate 
in this respect even if perfectly firm and 
sound and free from decay. Vegetables of 
many kinds change decidedly in texture as 
they reach maturity, and become pithy or 



What Can Be Saved 19 



fibrous; this makes them not only poor in 
quality but much more difficult to prepare. 
There is another reason why the product 
to be used for saving for winter should be 
obtained or gathered while comparatively 
young. In many vegetables and fruits, fur- 
ther growth or chemical changes continue to 
take place even after harvesting. There is 
always a tendency for the vegetable or fruit 
to reach complete maturity before being sub- 
ject to the attacks of destructive bacteria. 
Therefore all products which are fully ma- 
tured or overripe have a tendency to spoil 
much more quickly than the same products 
if taken at an earlier stage of development. 
Hence there are many reasons why all de- 
cayed stuff, or even overripe or overmatured 
vegetables or fruit, should be discarded, or, 
if not bad enough for that, put up by them- 
selves, when canning or drying. These sec- 
ond grade products, if put aside for early 
use, may be well worth keeping; mixed with 
other things, however, they might become a 



20 Save It for Winter 

source of contagion that would result in con- 
siderable loss. 

The modern idea of saving foodstuffs for 
winter, however, is not merely to make use 
of surpluses, but to plant and to grow crops 
especially for this purpose. In this way they 
may be had when there is most time to do 
the work and gathered when they are in per- 
fect condition. 

Most of the fruits, of course, must be taken 
in their regular season, but provision can 
be made in advance to can or dry them im- 
mediately they have been obtained. All soft 
fruits begin to spoil very quickly^ and where 
there is a day or two of delay in getting ready 
to do the work after they have been bought 
or picked, there is a great deal more work 
in putting them up, and a product of doubtful 
quality. 

In both canning and drying vegetables, 
also, it is important to use them the same 
day that they are gathered, if possible. With 
products from the home garden, everything 
should be in readiness in the kitchen before 



What Can Be Saved 21 

one goes into the garden after the crops that 
may be wanted. 

In the following paragraphs the sugges- 
tions are given as to just when the different 
vegetables or fruits should be used to be in 
the best condition, with a mention of the vari- 
eties w^hich will prove satisfactory for this 
purpose, and especially satisfactory for sav- 
ing for winter. In the planting table at the 
end of the chapter are shown the approxi- 
mate number of days that it will take the 
different crops to be ready for use and the 
date for planting to have them ready at a 
given time. 

VEGETABLES AND FRUITS THAT CAN BE SAVED AND 
HOW TO GET THEM IN THE BEST CONDITION 

Asparagus: This is usually kept by can- 
ning but may also be dried. Surplus may 
readily be used, but if setting out a new bed 
it will be well to allow for saving part of the 
crop for winter use. Preparation for both 
canning and drying is easy, and the keeping 
qualities are good. The crop is ready to save 



22 Save It for Winter 

from early spring to June. If white stalks 
are preferred they should be produced by 
hilling up along the rows before the sprouts 
start. 

Beans: These are one of the most valuable 
and most profitable vegetables to be saved 
for winter. Many kinds, of course, can be 
saved in the dry state, and generous plant- 
ings of these should be made. The snap and 
butter or Lima beans can be saved for winter 
by canning or dehydrating. They are easy 
to prepare and sometimes they are kept by 
pickling in a salt pack. While surpluses may 
be used, it is better to make plantings espe- 
cially for winter use ; otherwise the seeds will 
be of uneven development with many too old 
to be of the best quality. Beans are very 
easily grown and yield heavily, the prepara- 
tion is easy and they keep excellently. The 
snap and butter varieties can be had any 
time during summer or early fall. Those 
wanted to keep in a dry state are usually 
planted in time to mature early in the fall. 
For canning or drying beans, use Stringless 



What Can Be Saved 23 

Green Pod or Brittle Wax or other similar 
types. Where the space is limited a large 
yield may be obtained by planting pole vari- 
eties, such as Kentucky Wonder, McCasland, 
or Golden Cluster. For drying there are, 
among the dwarf sorts, several different 
types, such as Kidney Beans, Navy Beans, 
and Boston Pea Beans, all of which grow 
readily even on soil which might be consid- 
ered a little poor for most garden vegetables. 
Pole beans, such as the Horticultural and 
Case Knife, are grown especially for keeping 
in the dry state ; most of the early varieties 
of bush beans, the bush Limas and the pole 
Limas can be kept for winter in the dry state 
if the surplus pods are picked and carefully 
dried and stored as soon as they mature. 

Beets: While the simplest way of keeping 
beets, where the facilities are present, is to 
store them, they can also be tinned, dried or 
pickled. While small amounts may be put 
up from the garden surplus by the drying 
method, it is much better to make one or 
more plantings particularly for winter use. 



24 Save It for Winter 

Beets to be stored for winter should always 
be grown especially for this purpose from a 
late planting. The yield is large for the 
space occupied, the crop is one very easily 
grown, and the keeping qualities are excel- 
lent, so that altogether beets are among the 
best vegetables for winter use. They may 
be had as planned for any time from early 
summer on. If for drying it will be well to 
have them ready before real hot weather is 
over. If for canning, early in the fall when 
the work can be done more conveniently. The 
crop planned for storing should be planted so 
late that they will be just good table size in 
time to take them out of the ground before 
freezing. Early Model and Dark Ked Ball 
are two extra high quality varieties, the 
latter being of a very deep color which makes 
it attractive for keeping. For winter stor- 
age I know of no sort superior to Detroit 
Dark Eed. 

.Brussels Sprouts: This member of the 
cabbage family is particularly hardy and can 
be kept out of doors where grown until 



What Can Be Saved 25 



Christmas or later and is easily stored there- 
after. To most people's taste they are more 
delicious than the best cabbage. The yield, 
however, is not as great. If wanted for win- 
ter use, they should, of course, be planted 
to mature later in the fall. 

Cabbage: One of the most universally 
used winter vegetables, as it is readily stored 
and transported. It is, however, rather 
bulky, and where space is limited can be kept 
easily by drying; also used to a large extent 
pickled. Surplus cabbage in the garden is 
usually wasted but can easily be kept by de- 
hydrating. A special planting, however, 
should be made for winter use. The yield is 
large, preparation for keeping is easy, the 
keeping qualities are excellent, and for every 
family which is not too aristocratic to object 
strenuously to having its unpleasing odor 
penetrate through every room in the house, 
it should form one of the mainstays of the 
winter vegetable supply. Copenhagen Mar- 
ket and All Seasons are two of the best vari- 
eties for summer use, Danish Ballhead and 



26 Save It for Winter 

Flat Dutch are the two standards for winter 
storage. The latter is more sure to make 
good heads though not quite so solid. The 
Savoy or Wrinkled Cabbage is a finer quality 
than any of the others, and is especially good 
for dehydrating. 

Carrots: They are usually stored like 
other winter root crops. Carrots are very 
easily and very well kept by dehydrating. 
By either method, however, the roots should 
be young and tender when taken; 95 per cent, 
of the carrots obtained in market or home 
grown are far too old to be of the best 
table quality. They are heavy yielders, eas- 
ily grown, and keep excellently. The surplus 
from the summer crops may be made use of 
for dehydrating, and a late planting made for 
winter use. There are several different types 
of carrots which vary considerably in shape 
and length. Danver's Half Long is the stand- 
ard for general purposes. New Amsterdam 
and Coreless are newer varieties which, while 
of moderate length, hold their shape well 



What Can Be Saved 27 

to the end, so that they can be prepared with 
less waste and are of superior quality. 

Cauliflower: By proper storing this may 
be'kept well into the winter; it can also be 
saved by dehydrating although it turns rather 
dark. It is, of course, a favorite ingredient 
for mixed pickles of several kinds. The sur- 
plus of the spring-planted crop may be used 
for dehydrating, and a special late planting 
made for storing and the putting up of 
pickles in the fall. Dry Weather and Snow- 
ball or Best Early are the standard sure 
heading varieties. 

Celery: This is universally grown as a 
fall and winter crop. Not everywhere, how- 
ever, are there facilities for storing it in the 
ordinary way. Where space is lacking it 
can be kept very satisfactorily by dehydrat- 
ing, for which purpose any surplus among 
the early plants may be utilized. The dwarf 
growing, easily blanched varieties, such as 
Golden Self-blanching, Winter Queen, Ford- 
hook Emperor, and Easy Blanching, should 
be used. 



28 Save It for Winter 

Greens: This includes such vegetables as 
Swiss chard, kale, Chinese cabbage, beet tops, 
Marsh marigolds or ^'cowslips,'' and so 
forth. Any of these may be either canned 
or dehydrated. As this kind of vegetable is 
usually the most scarce, and the most lack- 
ing in the winter diet, it is a good plan to 
save such surpluses as there may be through 
the summer by dehydrating small quantities, 
which can be done readily, and to make late 
plantings of whatever sorts are liked the best 
for canning. 

Leehs: While less economical to grow than 
onions, they can be kept by dehydrating the 
surplus of the summer crop. The regular 
garden crop saved in this way will answer 
for most families, as a little will go a long 
way. 

Mushrooms: This delicate vegetable is 
easily kept by canning; and where they may 
be obtained growing wild in large quantities 
it makes one of the cheapest as well as one 
of the most delicious winter dishes. No one 
should attempt to put them up, however, who 



What Can Be Saved 29 

has not had enough experience to be abso- 
lutely certain that only the non-poisonous 
kind are being used — better to go without 
them at all than to provide subject matter 
for an obituary in your local paper. Where 
mushrooms are home grown they may be had 
fresh in winter as well as in summer. 

Okra: This may be either canned or de- 
hydrated, or simply dried. In either case it 
will make a very agreeable flavoring for a 
change in the winter's soups and stews. The 
pods should be taken while quite small. It 
is easily grown, and one planting will prob- 
ably furnish all that is wanted for winter in 
addition to that used for summer. 

Onions: These are usually kept by stor- 
ing, but as they are much more difficult to 
keep than most of the root crops, they are a 
good product for dehydrating if they can be 
obtained cheaply when the market is apt to 
be over-supplied in the fall, or where they 
can be grown in the home garden although 
there may be no facilities for storing them. 
Those for either storing or dehydrating will 



30 Save It for Winter 

be produced from the regular spring-sown 
crop. They are easily dried and lose little of 
their flavor in the process. The white vari- 
eties are easily grown but they are more diffi- 
cult to harvest and to keep than the yellow 
and red sorts; the white varieties are the 
mildest in flavor. Dehydrating is therefore a 
very good way of keeping the tenderer and 
milder sorts. Onions are also used in many 
pickle mixtures or pickled by themselves. 

Parsnips: This is one of the easiest vege- 
tables of all to store for winter use, as they 
may merely be left in the ground. Part of 
the crop, however, should be taken up to be 
stored or dehydrated for use during mid-win- 
ter. To have parsnips of the best quality the 
seeds should not be planted nearly as early 
as is usually done. 

Peas: These are easily either canned or 
dehydrated, provided enough of them can be 
got at one time in just the right condition. If 
surpluses from small plantings are depended 
on, there are likely to be many too old or 
too young. Special plantings should be made 



What Can Be Saved 31 

for winter use. It is best to plant these to 
mature just before the coming of hot weather ; 
then if the crop fails another chance may be 
taken by planting early in the autumn in 
time to mature the crop before frost. As 
extreme earliness is no particular advantage, 
a large-podded, fine-flavored variety should 
be grown. In the dwarf varieties there are 
British Wonder, Blue Bantam and Laxato- 
nian ; in the taller growing kinds, which need 
support of some kind, there are Gradus, 
Thomas Laxton, and Alderman. It takes 
more room and is more work to put up a 
given amount of peas than of many of the 
other garden products, but they keep readily 
and their delicious flavor makes it well worth 
while. 

Peppers : These may be dried, dehydrated, 
or used in connection with other vegetables 
in various pickles and condiments. Surplus 
of the stock for summer and fall use may 
easily be saved and utilized, as they are easily 
handled in small quantities. For pickling 
and preserving, the pungent varieties, such 



32 Save It for Winter 

as Long Eed Cayenne, or Tabasco, are used ; 
for canning and drying, the milder, thick- 
fleshed sorts are preferable. Of these one 
of the best and earliest to mature is Neapoli- 
tan. The standard general-purpose pepper 
is Euby King. Chinese Giant is the largest 
of all, but also the latest to mature, so, un- 
less it can be planted early, use one of the 
others. 

Potatoes: The white or Irish potatoes and 
sweet potatoes are grown more extensively 
for winter use than any other vegetable. 
They are, of course, kept ordinarily by stor- 
ing, although the ^' sweets '* are not stored 
so generally in the home, as they are much 
more difficult to keep than white potatoes. 
Both kinds, however, are easily dehydrated 
and keep excellently. Sweet potatoes espe- 
cially are one of the best vegetables for de- 
hydrating, and a considerable amount should 
be put up while the tubers can be purchased 
cheaply in the fall. While the yield of either 
Irish or sweet potatoes, where the conditions 
are favorable, is good, nevertheless they are 



What Can Be Saved 33 

not crops which can be grown profitably, com- 
pared to most of the other root crops, in the 
home garden. If one can watch the market 
carefully in the fall or is able to buy direct 
from the grower, they can almost always be 
bought cheaper than they can be grown in 
a small way, unless one has ground available 
after planting all the other things which ordi- 
narily are required in the home garden. Irish 
Cobbler for early and Green Mountain or 
Gold Coin for late, are the standard vari- 
eties of Irish potatoes and are all of excel- 
lent quality as well as good yielders. Sweet 
potatoes may be grown much farther north, 
as a home garden proposition, than they are 
grown commercially. I have matured good 
crops in northern Connecticut. An early va- 
riety such as Jersey Eed should be used. 

Pumpkin: This is another crop which is 
easily kept for w^inter either by storing or 
dehydrating. Table or sugar pumpkins are 
easily prepared for keeping and will keep 
well. In many home gardens where they are 
never grown they could be planted to advan- 



34 Save It for Winter 

tage rather late in the season, as they will 
make satisfactory growth among sweet corn, 
pole beans, tomatoes, or near the edge of 
the garden where they can run out over the 
grass or climb a fence. If one can get out 
into the country they can often be obtained 
for little or nothing from some farmer who 
has more than he wants for his own use. 

Rhubarb: A generous amount of this very 
delicious and very prolific vegetable should 
be grown in every home garden. A few 
plants well cared for will give a sufficient 
supply for the average family for both sum- 
mer and winter use. Ehubarb, because it 
will continue to live and throw up a few tough 
stalks with no care at all, is generally alto- 
gether neglected in the home garden, the 
yield being not over a fifth to a tenth of 
what it would be if properly attended to. 

Salsify : ^ ' Oyster-plant, ' ' as it is generally 
known, is somewhat similar to parsnips 
though making a much smaller root ; and like 
parsnips it is uninjured by freezing and may 
be kept in the ground over winter. Part of 



What Can Be Saved 35 

the crop, however, should be taken up in the 
fall for winter use and saved either by stor- 
ing or by dehydrating. While they yield less 
than parsnips they make a very agreeable 
change in the winter vegetable menu, and un- 
less the garden space is very limited a supply 
should be grown by every one who expects to 
put up a complete assortment of vegetables 
for winter use. 

Spinach : While what has been said in gen- 
eral in regard to *^ Greens'* applies to spin- 
ach, it should be kept in mind that there are 
several types and the varieties for planting 
for winter use should be selected according 
to preference and to the season during which 
they will be grown. For spring sowing use 
All Seasons and Victoria; these are also good 
for early summer use. New Zealand, which 
is of a running habit of growth and gives 
a continuous yield through the hottest 
weather, is an entirely distinct type. For 
fall use. All Seasons and Victoria may be 
sown again. 

Squash: Squash, like pumpkin, may be 



36 Save It for Winter 

saved for winter by storing, canning, or dry- 
ing. It would be mucli more generally grown 
for summer use if it were commonly recog- 
nized that there are bush and small growing 
varieties which give a heavy yield of medium- 
sized fruits which will keep excellently for 
winter. One of these is Fordhook, which may 
be obtained either in the vine or the bush 
form. Another which makes a moderate 
length of vine, with the fruits set close to- 
gether, is Delicata. Both of these have very 
hard thin rinds and will keep excellently; 
they are much earlier in maturing than the 
standard winter varieties; and can be sown 
among sweet corn or along the edge of a gar- 
den or near a fence, up to the middle of sum- 
mer, and will yield a generous supply of first 
quality squashes for winter use, to be either 
stored or canned or dehydrated. Of the stand- 
ard winter varieties, Delicious and Warted 
Hubbard are especially good. 

Tomato: This is another vegetable that 
is among the very best for winter use. While 
there are likely to be surpluses from the reg- 



What Can Be Saved 37 



ular crop, if many are to be put up it will 
be well to make a planting especially for this 
purpose. Tomatoes yield very heavily and 
if staked up and cared for are one of the most 
profitable vegetables for winter which can 
possibly be grown in the home garden. Be- 
ing acid, they not only keep excellently them- 
selves but serve as a preservative when put 
up with other things. They are easily pre- 
pared for canning and can be prepared for 
table in a great variety of ways for winter. 
While tomatoes cannot be stored over win- 
ter, nevertheless, if carefully put up they can 
be kept until Christmas or later to be used 
as fresh fruit. Try some this way. (See 
directions in Chapter VII.) 

Many home gardeners make the mistake of 
trying to obtain the largest fruiting toma- 
toes which they can. The very largest fruit- 
ing sorts are not the heaviest yielders. Get 
a medium-sized variety of good dark red 
color, such as Chalk's Jewel, Bonny Best, 
Matchless, Stone, or Globe. The first two of 
these are considerably earlier and therefore 



38 Save It for Winter 

preferable for late planting, especially for 
canning. There are varieties with smooth, 
medium-sized fruit of excellent quality. 

Turnip : This vegetable is one of the most 
valuable for winter use because of the tre- 
mendous yields it gives, its freedom from 
insects and disease, and the very short time 
required in which to mature a crop, so that 
it may be planted after most spring and sum- 
mer vegetables and still have time to mature. 
Turnips are excellent winter keepers, and 
where there is storage room that is the sim- 
plest way to save the crop. They can, how- 
ever, be either canned or dehydrated readily. 
The regular varieties of turnips grow so rap- 
idly that special care must be taken to get 
them while they are still small and tender. 
Both for storing and for saving for winter 
use it is better to delay sowing until about 
mid-summer and then use a medium-sized va- 
riety of excellent table quality, such as Amber 
Globe, Purple Top, Strap Leaf, or White 

Rutabagas are first cousin to the turnips 



What Can Be Saved 39 



and largely grown for winter use. They take 
a little longer time to grow and must be 
planted earlier. While the large, coarse va- 
rieties are used mostly for stock, a fine- 
grained, tender sort, such as Bread Stone, 
or Golden Neckless, is as good as any turnip 
for table use. 



FEUITS 



In the nature of the case, home grown sup- 
plies of fruit cannot be as readily adjusted 
to the requirements of the winter table as 
can vegetables. If fruit is being set out, 
however, one^s requirements for winter 
should be taken into consideration. The 
great majority of country places and even 
small suburban places could grow with profit 
several times the amount of fruit which they 
now produce. Most of the fruits are highly 
perishable and they may often be obtained 
in season very cheaply when there is an over- 
supply; especially if one has the means of 
getting out to the sources of production they 
can be had at prices which will make saving 



40 Save It for Winter 

them for winter a very profitable undertak- 
ing. 

The hard fruits, such as apples, pears and 
quinces, may be stored for winter if perfect 
specimens of the suitable varieties are used. 
Varieties which will not keep, or specimens 
selected from good winter varieties which 
may have been bruised or become spotted, 
may be either canned or dehydrated by re- 
moving the injured part. 

Soft fruits, such as apricots, cherries, figs, 
peaches, plums, are usually canned ; but they 
make, of course, rather bulky products and if 
a generous supply of the fruit is available, 
more than can readily be canned, some of it 
should be saved by dehydrating. This will 
give a product equally good for many pur- 
poses, occupying very much less space, and 
not necessitating the use of glass containers 
to keep it. 

Citrous fruits may be saved by canning, al- 
though some of them are more frequently 
kept in the forms of jam or marmalade. 

Berries, including blackberries, blueber- 



What Can Be Saved 



41 



H 



PQ 

d 
o 

t-H ►^ 



d 
a 

O 



O 

PQ 

< 

O 
> 

O 
PQ ^ 

^1 



< 

Ph 



w 



03 





^ >0 O lO 




lOi-Hi-^^ T-l c^^ 




iO I— 1 T-H rH ,-H ,-H i-H i-H tH H » -^ -^ 


o 


-tJ 


o 


fe 


^^^^^^^^^ 2J2 ^^ ^ 




3 ^ ^^ ^ 






1-1 

1 

M5 '^ »6 




rH {ji) tH 


^ 




*a 




C3 




5^§'9SS33 ^^3 57 § :3 3 :3 5 




^^^^^1^6 77»if^^ ^i j^j^;A 




THrH^^^^^^^ ,-H ^ ^ ,-) T-l '-< T-Hi-H i-H i-H .-H 




lll^g^a^a l^^^^g a| III 




o 

1 
1— 1 

o 3 




lOLO in ^ *-i I0i0l0»0 


b»s 


,-1 '-< i-H rH lO ,-1,-lr-llO 4^ T-H 1 lO i-H i-H lO '-"-' Uti 






l-c 

o 


7777^^777^^77^ ^2 i^^^7^ 




»o lo lo Jj 7 7 Jj <i uo 1 1 »ou^ 1 ^ 1 ^^J2 1 ;2^ 1 




III ^ a alllll'^ ^ a § ^ ^ ^llli 

^ § ^ <1 <11 <3l <11 <Jl ^ <1 <^ <5l <3i h^ ^ <1 -<^ <1 ^ ^ -< 












T3 •S' • 




















0) 






o 

§^ 

3^ 




c3 . d • 




















M 

> 


-O^J^ ft 

oT aT to" ,, 

d d d^ 

c3 ^ ^ d 


3rO f_ 


•5 


1^ o3 

<u rn CQ ^ ?- 


1 


'3 


2> 


^ d § 

d d fH 




(iia»<i:)aJs-(C3o3o3a305H~"' risnHc^iDaJea q',"-' ,'-' 




qqWDQCQWOOaOOO OOfiH^^PHOiMEHH 



42 Save It for Winter 

ries, huckleberries, raspberries, may all be 
used extensively for canning and to make 
various ^^ preserves.'' Most of these are well 
adapted to saving by dehydrating and make 
an easily prepared and long-keeping product 
that is excellent for winter keeping. 



I 



CHAPTER IV 

CANNING 

The many methods used, and tlie many 
things to be handled in different ways, may 
make the art of canning seem at first a rather 
complicated one. Nevertheless, the general 
principles involved are always the same, no 
matter what is being canned, nor how, nor on 
what scale it is done. Once the general prin- 
ciples are understood, therefore, one has a 
key to the whole matter, and it becomes ac- 
cordingly simplified and easy to understand. 

The spoiling or decay of various fruits and 
vegetables is caused by the attack of one or 
more of three destructive agencies : bacteria, 
yeast, molds. Hot weather, or dry or moist 
air, which are often considered the causes of 
spoiling, are not direct causes. It is only as 
they make for conditions which are favor- 
able or unfavorable to the growth of the or- 

43 



44 Save It for Winter 

ganisms which do attack food products, that 
they may be considered a cause of spoiling. 
When vegetables or fruits decay or turn sour 
or ferment, it is not a simple physical change, 
but the result of the growth of certain living 
vegetable organisms, or to use the common 
phrase, ^^ germs.'* The individual germ, of 
course, is too small to be seen without a mi- 
croscope; but growing in the tissues of the 
vegetable or fruit they multiply with such 
rapidity that under favorable conditions they 
may cause it to change entirely, or decay or 
sour in a few hours. 

As an illustration of how such changes are 
possible, take for instance the action of yeast ; 
a cake of yeast is, in reality, nothing more 
nor less than a compact mass of millions 
and millions of germs which, under favor- 
able conditions, soon permeate the whole 
mass of dough with which they are mixed. 
The action of ^^ mother of vinegar" is an- 
other familiar example. 

The germs which attack fruits and vege- 
tables belong to three distinct classes, viz.. 










73 P 



4 



Canning 45 

bacteria, molds, and yeasts. Their develop- 
ment will cause vegetables and fruits to de- 
cay or mold, canned fruits or vegetables to 
sour or spoil, and jellies, preserves and 
pickles to mold. They are not, however, all 
alike in their tastes. The bacteria group 
thrive where there is little or no acid; the 
yeast and molds, on the other hand, thrive 
only where there is acid. Most fruits are 
acid and most vegetables are not; therefore, 
it is usually yeast or mold that causes the 
spoiling of fruits, and bacteria which causes 
the spoiling of vegetables. It is important 
to know this, because the yeast or molds can 
be killed at a much lower temperature than 
the bacteria. 

HOW PKODUCTS AKE PEESERVED BY CANNING 

There is one thing more which should be 
fully realized about these vegetable micro- 
organisms which we have been considering, 
before we can plan intelligently just how to 
get the best of them. Notwithstanding their 
minute size and the incredible rapidity with 



46 Save It for Winter 

which they increase, each individual germ has 
to go through its complete life cycle, just as 
a plant does or a tree ; each is a living organ- 
ism. Each individual germ, no matter how 
many millions of them there may be in a 
single spoonful of vegetables or fruit, must 
sprout from a seed or ^^ spore,'' grow, ma- 
ture, and in its turn reproduce seed or spores 
from which the next generation springs. It 
is absolutely impossible for any form of bac- 
teria, yeast, or mold to develop spontaneously 
in any vegetable product. 

On the other hand, to make any vegetable 
product safe from their attacks it is neces- 
sary to destroy not only the growing organ- 
isms, but all the seed or spores, as well. Any 
one knows from common observation that 
Nature insures the continued existence of the 
various forms of plant life by protecting the 
germ in the seed — ^which carries the thread 
of life from one germination to the next — 
against conditions which would destroy the 
growing plant. You have seen come up in 
your garden in the spring, plants from seeds 



Canning 47 

of such tender things as melons and squash, 
which have remained uninjured in the ground 
over winter. In like manner the seeds or 
spores of bacteria, molds and yeast are much 
more difficult to destroy than the growing 
organisms themselves. Therefore, to make 
safe the products which we would keep for 
winter, it is necessary to be certain that the 
treatment given is sufficient to destroy the 
former as well as the latter. 

As I have already stated, food products 
may be saved either by killing the germs 
present and making it impossible for others 
to get at the food, or by making the environ- 
ment so unfavorable for the particular form 
of germ life to be dealt with that it could 
not develop sufficiently to cause any trouble. 
In canning of all kinds, the former method 
is utilized, the germs are destroyed by heat— 
or in more scientific terms, the product is 
''sterilized.'' In some instances this steril- 
ization is also supplemented by a second 
method, i.e., by the use of ''preservatives'' 
which make conditions unfavorable for any 



48 Save It for Winter 

further development of bacteria or yeast or 
mold. 

THE THEORY OF ** CANNING" 

Eeduced to a single sentence, then, the 
whole theory of preserving food by canning 
is as follows. We (1) take the food or vege- 
table product to be preserved, in or upon 
which there are already present the germs 
which, if left to themselves, would soon de- 
stroy it; (2) place the product in a container 
and apply heat enough for a sufficiently long 
time to destroy completely the germs and 
germ spores which may be present; (3) seal 
it absolutely air-tight so that no more germs 
can gain access to the product. In some in- 
stances a preservative is used in addition to 
sterilization. 

How can the point of actual sterilization 
be determined? 

Coming to the practical side of the matter, 
that is naturally the first question which 
must be answered. There is no way of tell- 
ing by watching the progress of the work 
while it is being done and no uniform rule 



Canning 49 

which will apply to everything. As a general 
rule, the less cooking or heating required to 
make the product safe, the better; for then 
the more nearly it will resemble in color and 
flavor the fresh product. There are, how- 
ever, a few general principles which may be 
kept in mind and will serve to some extent as 
a basis on which to estimate the treatment 
which may be required by different vege- 
tables or fruit. (For more specific informa- 
tion see the ^^Time Table'' at the end of this 
chapter. It is based upon the result of actual 
practice.) 

In the first place, the molds and yeasts — 
which, as we have seen, are more likely to 
attack fruit than vegetables— succumb at a 
comparatively low temperature— 150 to 165 
degrees F., which is considerably below the 
boiling-point of water (212 degrees F.). 
Many of the bacteria, however, which usually 
attack vegetable products, will withstand the 
boiling temperature for a long period ; some 
of them over an hour. By the usual process, 
employing heat alone, therefore, the thorough 



50 Save It for Winter 

sterilizing of most vegetables is a long proc- 
ess. The acid vegetables, tomatoes and rhu- 
barb, can be made safe for keeping in a com- 
paratively short time, because they do not 
furnish a favorable environment for the de- 
velopment of bacteria. A temperature of 
212 degrees can, of course, be obtained by 
keeping the containers in which the product 
is placed immersed in boiling water. To 
shorten the time required, however, a higher 
temperature may be obtained by using ves- 
sels in which the free escape of steam is pre- 
vented, or in which steam itself under pres- 
sure is used for supplying the heat. (See 
Chapter VIII, on equipment.) 

NEW METHODS IN VEGETABLE CANNING 

The thing which has done more to simplify 
the keeping of vegetables and fruits by can- 
ning — with the possible exception of the cold- 
pack method — is the use of a little acid (usu- 
ally lemon juice) in the liquid or syrup in 
which the products are put up. Experiments 
at the California Experiment Station showed 



Canning 51 

that peas heated to the boiling-point (212 de- 
grees F.) kept perfectly when five ounces 
of lemon juice to the gallon was added ; while 
without the lemon juice, under the same con- 
ditions, they quickly spoiled. Corresponding 
results were obtained with beans, beets, as- 
paragus, pumpkin and other vegetables which 
are considered very hard to keep. The 
amount of lemon juice is so small that in 
most cases, if noticeable at all, it improves 
the flavor. 

Experiments with fruits established the 
fact that many varieties could be sterilized 
at a temperature considerably under that 
usually used (212 degrees F.). The object of 
this low temperature in sterilization is to 
keep the fruit as near the fresh form as pos- 
sible, as cooking changes the flavor, texture 
and looks of the fruit. By carefully con- 
trolling the temperature, peaches, apricots, 
pears, cherries and berries were found to 
keep perfectly after being sterilized at 165 
to 175 degrees F. and were only slightly al- 
tered in flavor and texture from the fresh 



52 Save It for Winter 

fruit. This seemed to be particularly true of 
the peaches. 

THE COLD-PACK METHOD OF CANNING 

While there are, in general, two methods 
of canning in use — the hot-pack and the cold- 
pack — the latter is so much better adapted 
under almost all conditions for home use, that 
for all practical purposes it may be said to 
have replaced the other. Some products, such 
as soups and *^ rations," are, because of their 
physical make-up, packed while hot, but this 
is only a matter of convenience. 

Under the old or hot-pack method, the prod- 
uct to be preserved was heated until ster- 
ilized and then placed while hot in jars or 
cans and immediately sealed. By the new 
method, the materials are packed cold in the 
jars, covered with the syrup or liquor which 
is to go with them, heated until sterilized and 
immediately sealed. The advantage of the 
cold-pack method is, of course, obvious, in 
so far as convenience and quickness are con- 



Canning 53 

cerned. In addition to that, however, better 
results are obtained. Packing the products 
before sterilization instead of after, very 
greatly reduces the possibihty of having the 
product re-infected with the bacteria or mold 
from the air, fingers, or other sources. 

With the cold-pack method, either the one 
** period '^ or the intermittent or fractional 
process of sterilization may be used. In the 
former the product is put in and left until 
thoroughly sterilized at one heating, when it 
is sealed and finished. By the latter, which 
has already been mentioned, the product is 
heated two or three times, at intervals of 
twelve to twenty-four hours. The advantage 
of this is that the product may be thoroughly 
sterilized without using the high temperature 
necessary by the one-period method. If the 
sterilizing can be done when the fire in the 
home is being used for other things, on suc- 
cessive days, it may mean that but little extra 
work will be required. Ordinarily, however, 
the one-period method is the one most con- 
venient and, therefore, most widely used. 



54 Save It for Winter 

EXPLANATION OF TEEMS USED 

Before taking up in detail the various steps 
to be followed, an understanding of tlie vari- 
ous terms used will help considerably in mak- 
ing clear the work that is to be done. Briefly, 
they are as follows : 

Product: The vegetable or fruit, or com- 
binations of either, to be saved for winter. 

Preparing : Getting the product ready for 
canning. This may vary with the different 
products from merely washing to peeling, re- 
moving seeds or pits, cutting up into sec- 
tions, or any other work that may be required 
before getting the product into the shape 
into which it will be wanted for keeping. One 
of the objections sometimes made to the econ- 
omy of canning is the amount of work and 
time required for this work. It should be 
remembered, however, that for fresh vege- 
tables or fruits bought at the store as they 
are wanted, this work will have to be done 
anyway, in getting them ready to cook. It 



Canning 55 

is really less work to do it in a wholesale way 
at the time of canning. 

Containers: The cans, jars, crocks or other 
vessels in which the product is to be kept. 
There are a great variety of these, which are 
described more in detail in Chapter VIII, on 
equipment and accessories. 

Blanching: '^Scalding or blanching" con- 
sists in dipping the product into boiling wa- 
ter or placing it in live steam for a short pe- 
riod — one to fifty minutes. Where greens or 
green vegetables are to be put up, using 
steam gives the best result, as the volatile 
oils which they contain, and which would be 
lost by parboiling, are kept in the product. 
For blanching in hot water, the product is 
merely put in a piece of cheesecloth, left in 
the boiling water for the required length of 
time, and lifted out. For blanching in steam, 
the product may be put into a colander and 
placed over boiling water and covered as well 
as possible ; but a steam cooker will be much 
more thorough and convenient. 

Dipping or Cold-dipping: This consists in 



56 Save It for Winter 

plunging the product, for a moment, into cold 
water after removing it from the boiling 
water or steam in which it has blanched. The 
colder the water for this purpose the better. 

Packing: The product after being dipped 
is ready to be placed in the container in which 
it is to be kept. The product should have 
been cut or prepared in such a way as to fit 
most conveniently into the container, unless 
it is to be put up whole. 

Syrup: Syrup is made usually of water 
and sugar for pouring over the fruit or vege- 
tables after they have been packed, before 
sterilizing. It is usually designated as thin, 
medium, or heavy, according to the amount 
of sugar it contains. For directions for mak- 
ing and testing syrup see page 76. 

Brine: With most vegetables, salt instead 
of sugar is used, generally only in small quan- 
tities — not much more than would be em- 
ployed in cooking fresh vegetables. The too 
free use of salt very much injures the flavor 
of the product, and it should be applied only 
with care. For directions for making and 



Canning 



57 



testing brine of various strength see page 77. 
Processing : This is the application of heat 
which is counted on to destroy the germs and 
spores contained in the product, thus leaving 
it sterilized and ready to keep. The amount 
of heat and the time required will depend 




A — Wire pail to set in pot or kettle. B — Wire false bottom to go in an 
ordinary wash-boiler to prevent jars from cracking. A wooden false bot- 
tom may be made of laths to use in place of the wire bottom. 

upon the product and the apparatus to be 
used. The different kinds of equipment for 
processing will be found in Chapter VIII, on 
equipment. 

Sealing: After sterilization, the contain- 
ers, if crockery or glass, will have to be filled 



58 Save It for Winter 

immediately, while the contents are still hot, 
to keep the contents sterile. Where cans are 
used, they are sealed before the processing. 

Testing: Where glass containers are used 
after being filled, they are inverted and left 
to cool; they should be examined carefully 
for any sign of leakage and not stored until 
one is certain that all covers are absolutely 
air-tight. 

Discoloration: Where glass containers are 
used the action of the sun or even of strong 
light will, with most products, gradually ef- 
fect a bleaching out or discoloration. This 
is prevented either by storing the jars in an 
absolutely dark place, or wrapping each in 
newspaper or wrapping-paper to protect the 
contents from the light. 

THE OPERATIONS IN CANNING 

In canning there are three preliminary 
steps which should be attended to before the 
actual work is begun. First, have the prod- 
uct fresh, cleaned and sorted as to sizes and 
degrees of ripeness. Second, provide a suit- 




Bcforo professing, thf tr)i)s of tin- jars are put in place, but not made tight. 




'ilie tini.shed product is \vrapped in paper bet ore being .stored away, to prevent it.s 
being bleached out by the light. 



Canning 59 

able place in which to do the work, a table of 
ample size, plenty of fresh water, suitable 
cooking apparatus with control of heat and 
so forth. (For further details of equipment 
see Chapter VIII.) Third, sterilize all ket- 
tles, pans, knives, dippers, containers and 
other utensils which will be used in prepar- 
ing the fruit and putting it up after it is 
prepared. 

In this connection, it is important to realize 
that where rubber is used it must be espe- 
cially treated to avoid giving a disagreeable 
taste to the product : this often happens with- 
out the source of the trouble being recog- 
nized when the food is used. To be sure of 
avoiding danger from this source, all rubbers 
should be boiled slowly for several hours in 
an alkaline solution, formed by putting two 
or three tablespoonfuls of washing soda in 
a gallon of water. The rubbers should then 
be thoroughly rinsed and boiled a second time 
in water to which a little vinegar or lemon- 
juice has been added to make it slightly sour. 
This should be followed by a short boiling in 



60 Save It for Winter 

plain water. This may seem like a good deal 
of trouble, but as the work can be done well 
in advance of the canning it need, as a mat- 
ter of fact, occupy very little time. 

With everything in readiness proceed with 
the work as follows : 

(1) Prepare the product for canning by 
cleaning, skinning, pitting, cutting or slicing 
into suitable size, etc. ' 

(2) Bleach in steam or hot water for the 
required number of minutes. 

(3) Cold-dip it for a moment, remove, and 
drain. 

(4) Pack the product immediately into the 
containers to be used ; these should be freshly 
sterilized and still hot. A convenient way of 
keeping glass jars ready for use, is to place 
them upside-down in a shallow pan of hot 
water, after they have been sterilized. This 
prevents the entrance of dust and keeps 
them warm without the trouble of having 
them completely immersed in hot water. 

(5) Hot syrup or brine is then poured over 
the product, filling the containers full to the 




i o 



Caruning 61 

top. (Plain water is also used for this pur- 
pose.) 

(6) The tops are then put in place. If 
cans are being used, they are sealed ; if glass 
jars, the covers are fastened only tight 
enough to hold them securely in place, but 
not tight enough to prevent the escape of 
steam. 

(7) The containers are then placed in a 
vessel for processing for the length of time 
required for the product being put up, and 
the type of process being used — hot-water 
bath, pressure cooker or steam cooker. 

(8) Immediately upon being removed from 
processing, jars must be sealed tight. Test 
jars by placing them upside-down on a dry 
surface to cool. Watch carefully for leaks, 
and, if they occur, tighten the covers until 
the seal seems perfect. If leakage is dis- 
covered after a considerable time, it will be 
better to heat again to the sterilizing point 
before closing the covers. 

(9) Cool jars by allowing them to stand; 
cool cans by immersing in cold water. 



62 Save It for Winter 

(10) Label carefully, showing preferably 
not only the name of the product but the date 
on which it was put up ; and if it is being done 
for the first time, details as to the steriliza- 
tion period used, the amount of sugar, salt or 
lemon juice used, and other particulars which 
may be wanted when the work is to be done 
again. 

(11) Wrap the glass jars in paper to pro- 
tect them from light unless they are going to 
be stored in a perfectly dark place. 

(12) Store, if possible, where it is dark, 
and where the temperature will be as cool 
as may be obtained without danger of freez- 
ing. 

DIRECTIONS FOR CANNING VEGETABLES 

ArtichoJce: Use only the tender parts of 
very young heads; can whole in white jars 
or cut into vertical sections for cans. Bleach 
for five minutes, cover with 2 per cent, brine, 
process 10 to 20 minutes at 10 pounds pres- 
sure. If using glass jars, process 45 to 60 
minutes at 212 degrees F., adding lemon juice, 



Carming 63 

% pint to the gallon, to the 2 per cent, brine. 

Asparagus: Separate the stalks into three 
sizes ; if there is much asparagus to put up, 
make a small box as long as the can or jar 
is deep, and open at one side and one end. 
The stalks can then be placed in the box, tip 
end in, and the butts cut off at just the right 
length by working a sharp knife against the 
open end of the box. Blanch the stalks from 
one to four minutes according to size, pack 
into jars or cans with tips up, cover with 
2 per cent, brine, process cans for 15 min- 
utes or jars 20 minutes at 10 poxmds pres- 
sure. With lemon juice use 5 ounces to one 
gallon of brine ; process 45 to 60 minutes at 
212 degrees. 

Beans: Green beans should be as young 
and tender as possible. Sort as to size, mak- 
ing three lots if any quantity is being put 
up at one time. Tip and string after grad- 
ing. Break larger grades into pieces about 
an inch and a half long; the smaller beans 
may be canned whole. Blanch for 4 to 10 
minutes according to size and type; cover 



64 Save It for Winter 

with 2 per cent, brine; process for 40 min- 
utes at 10 pounds pressure. Process in jars 
or cans at 212 degrees for 2 hours; or, if 
using lemon-juice, l^ pint to the gallon of 
brine, process 35 to 45 minutes. 

Lima beans and shell beans, if a large 
enough quantity is being used, should be 
bleached and handled as above, except that 
in processing at 212 degrees, 3 hours instead 
of 2 will be required. 

Beans and Corn, or Beans, Corn and To- 
matoes: Use one part of corn to one of beans, 
or one part of corn, one of beans and three of 
tomatoes. Prepare beans as above. Blanch 
corn on the cob for 5 minutes, cold-dip and 
cut from cob. Blanch tomatoes 3 minutes 
or so, to loosen skin, and cold-dip; remove 
skins and cores, slice into medium-sized 
pieces. Mix corn and beans, or corn, beans 
and tomatoes thoroughly. Use glass jars or 
enameled tin cans ; process for 45 to 50 min- 
utes at 10 pounds pressure, or for 2 hours 
at 212 degrees. 

Beets: For best results use very small 



Canning 65 

roots, not over 1 to 1% inches in diameter. 
Scald to loosen jacket, fill in cold water, peel 
and pack whole or slice according to size of 
roots and containers. If using cans, only 
enamel lined should be employed. Prepare 
combination sugar and salt brine. 2 per cent, 
(or 2% ounces per gallon) of sugar, and 
2% per cent, (or 314 ounces per gallon) of 
salt ; bring to boil and fill cans or jars ; proc- 
ess for 30 to 40 minutes at 8 pounds pressure, 
or 11/2 hours at 212 degrees. Or add lemon 
juice — 4 ounces to the gallon of brine — and 
process for one hour. 

Brussels Sprouts: Eemove stems and 
loosen outer leaves ; make two grades for size 
if more than a jar or two are to be put up 
at a time. Blanch and process as directed 
for Green Beans. 

Cabbage: Use only clean solid parts of 
fresh cabbage ; remove outer leaves and core ; 
slice only sufficiently to pack well and easily. 
Bleach five minutes or so; process as for 
Green Beans. 

Carrots: Wash and scrape; blanch suffi- 



66 Save It for Winter 

ciently to loosen skin, or 4 or 5 minutes. Pre- 
pare brine of 2 per cent, salt and 3 per cent, 
sugar ; or in place of brine make to taste with 
salt, sugar, butter and water; process as di- 
rected for Beets. Or add lemon juice — 4 
ounces per gallon of brine — and process for 
1 hour. 

Cauliflower: Use only firm clean heads; 
before canning, soak in cold brine — to pound 
salt to 12 quarts of water — for an hour or 
so; remove from brine and blanch 3 min- 
utes; remove stems and divide sufficiently 
to pack in containers ; handle carefully ; pack 
as tightly as possible without mashing; cover 
with 3 per cent, brine or fill with boiling wa- 
ter ; add a teaspoonf ul of salt for each quart 
jar. Process for one hour at 212 degrees, or 
20 minutes at 15 pounds of steam pressure. 
Or add lemon juice to brine, as for Aspara- 
gus, and process for 45 minutes. 

Corn, Sweet: Corn has the reputation of 
causing a good deal of trouble in home can- 
ning. With care, however, it may be kept as 
successfully as other things. One of the im- 



Canning 67 

portant points is to select the ear at just the 
right state, as the kernels are passing from 
the milk to the dough state. It may be packed 
either hot or cold. By the former method, 
remove husks and soak carefully ; cut the ker- 
nels off with a sharp knife and place in cook- 
ing kettles. Add a syrup of % pound of 
sugar and l^/^ ounces of salt to a gallon of 
water. Add enough syrup to fairly cover 
the corn, and heat to boiling. Pack and ster- 
ilize cans while still hot. Process for 20 min- 
utes at 15 pounds pressure. 

By the cold-pack method, remove husks 
and soak for five minutes on cob; cold-dip; 
cut out kernels and pack directly in sterilized 
jars, leaving i/^ inch or so at the top to allow 
for expansion. It is best for two persons to 
work together, one to be packing the corn 
as fast as it is cut. If one is doing the 
work, a single jar at a time should be done, 
each jar as it is packed being placed in a hot 
water bath, at once adding 2 per cent, brine. 

As corn is difficult to sterilize properly, it 
is best that the corn be processed at 212 de- 



68 Save It for Winter 

grees and that six ounces of lemon juice per 
gallon be added to the brine or syrup. If this 
is done, 1% hours processing at 212 degrees 
is sufficient. 

In canning on the cob, which is often de- 
sirable where ears of a small variety, such 
as Golden Bantam, can be grown in the home 
garden, follow the same process as above, 
packing only selected ears in wide jars or 
large cans, removing tips if necessary to get 
them of a uniform length. 

Greens: Under this general head are in- 
cluded such vegetables as chard, kale, Chinese 
cabbage, cress, spinach, cabbage sprouts, 
beet tops, mustard, and such wild greens as 
milkweed, cowslips, etc. All of these things 
are gathered when young and tender and if 
put up properly make a valuable addition to 
the winter menu, when vegetables of this 
kind are especially scarce. One of the first 
essentials in getting good results with these 
things is to can them absolutely fresh, the 
day they are picked, and, if possible, within 
a few hours after cutting. Wash and rinse 



Canning 69 

them until thoroughly clean, and then pick 
over carefully, discarding old leaves and any 
tough stems or weeds. The blanching should 
be done in steam, for 10 to 15 minutes — the 
latter is not too much. Cold-dip and then 
cut into convenient length; pack as tightly 
as possible. Use medium brine or season 
with salt to taste. A few slips of boiled bacon 
or chipped beef may be added during the 
canning to improve the flavor; if olive oil is 
wanted with the greens, that also may be 
added at this time. Process as for Beans, 
Or add % pint of lemon juice to the gallon 
of brine, and process as for Green Beans. 

Mushrooms: First of all, be absolutely 
sure that you have fresh, edible mushrooms : 
remember that many lives are lost every year 
because people ^^ think'' they know mush- 
rooms. Even when you are sure you have 
the right kind, they must be canned imme- 
diately after gathering. Wash and stem, re- 
moving loose skin. If they are small, they 
can be canned whole; if large they should 
be cut into sections. Blanch in boiling water 



70 Save It for Winter 

for 5 minutes ; pack in glass or enamel cans ; 
cover with 2 to 3 per cent, brine. Process at 
212 degrees for 1% hours, or at 15 pounds 
pressure for 30 minutes. Wrap jars to pro- 
tect from light. When opening, remove from 
cans immediately and use as soon as possi- 
ble. 

OJcra: Use young pods. Wash in cold wa- 
ter ; blanch 20 minutes ; slice across the pods ; 
discard stem ends and tough pieces; cover 
with 3 per cent, brine, and process as for 
Green Beans. 

Okra and Tomatoes: Wash, blanch and cut 
okra as above ; place in an enamel kettle and 
mix with equal part of peeled and cored to- 
mato. Bring to a boil and cook for 15 min- 
utes ; process for about half the time required 
for okra as above. 

Parsnips: These are not usually canned, 
but they may be treated in the same way as 
Carrots, 

Peas: The separation of peas by hand for 
canning requires so much labor in compari- 
son to the machine methods used in commer- 



Canning 71 

cial establishments that there is not as much 
saving in the home canning of peas as with 
many other vegetables. It is possible to save 
any surplus which there may be, and often 
there is a good deal, and by careful work an 
extra-fine product may be obtained by home 
canning. Care must be exercised, however, 
to use only tender peas. Shell immediately 
after picking, and blanch five minutes or so — 
just enough to wrinkle the skin slightly ; two 
minutes may be sufficient with small tender 
peas. Use a combination brine containing 
2^ ounces of salt and 31/2 ounces of sugar 
to the gallon ; process for 25 to 30 minutes at 
10 pounds pressure. Where hot water only 
is available for processing, add to the brine 
as above 7 ounces of lemon juice per gallon 
and process for 45 minutes to 1 hour. 

Peppers: While these may be canned with 
the skins on for home use, the skin may be 
separated from the meat easily by baking 
in a hot open oven until the skin separates ; 
or by blanching for 3 minutes or so in boiling 
water to which soda-lye has been added — at 



72 Save It for Winter 

the rate of 3 ounces per gallon — and chilled 
by dipping immediately into very cold wa- 
ter. For canning without peeling, remove 
stems and seed cores and dip in boiling water 
a few minutes to soften the meat so that they 
can be folded and packed into the jars tightly; 
cover with boiling water or 2 per cent, brine. 

Potatoes J Sweet: As sweet potatoes do not 
keep readily, and can often be bought rather 
cheaply in the fall, it is then profitable to can 
them. Place in boiling water long enough to 
soften the skin; dip in cold water; peel; 
pack whole or in slices; cover with light 
brine. 

Pumphin: Pumpkin may be saved read- 
ily; as it is in demand throughout the year 
as a vegetable and for the making of pies, 
it is a good vegetable to put up. Use only the 
small ^^ sugar '* pumpkin. Clean; cut into 
sections, and place in boiling water until soft ; 
scrape off flesh and pulp through a colander ; 
and heat again to boiling temperature, pref- 
erably in a double-boiler to avoid possibility 
of scorching; pack while hot, filling the jars 



Canning 73 

not quite full. Process for 1 hour at 10 
pounds pressure. 

Second method : Clean the pumpkins ; cut 
the flesh up into cubes; and pack cold into 
containers ; cover with hot combination brine 
containing 2% ounces of salt and 4 ounces 
of lemon juice for a gallon. So prepared, 
the pumpkin will need a little further cooking 
when wanted for use, but will keep well and 
have good flavor and appearance. 

Rhubarb : This is one of the easiest of all 
vegetables to prepare and keep by canning. 
Naturally very acid, it resists the action of 
bacteria. The stalks, after being washed, 
may be cut into short sections of an inch or 
an inch and a half in length, or in pieces that 
will just go into the container, to be packed 
like asparagus. Jars or enamel cans should 
be sterilized before being packed. Fill with 
water and process for 10 minutes at 10 
pounds pressure, or 30 minutes at 212 de- 
grees. 

Salsify or Vegetable Oyster: Same proc- 
ess as for Carrots. 



74 Save It for Winter 

Sauerkraut: Blanch three minutes; pack 
solidly in jars or cans ; add brine and process 
as for Green Beans. 

Squash: Prepare the same as Pumpkin. 

Succotash: See under Beans. 

Tomatoes: Tomatoes are more important 
than any other vegetable for keeping for 
winter by canning. Select only solid, smooth 
fruit, preferably of a deep color. Pick out 
the smallest, most uniform in size, for can- 
ning whole. Grade for ripeness, and discard 
any showing the slightest sign of decay, and 
also those not fully ripe — the latter may be 
kept for a day or two and will quickly ripen 
up. Immerse in boiling water just long 
enough to loosen the skin — % to 1 minute; 
dip in cold water and peel ; remove the cores 
and stem ends or other hard spots, saving 
the juice; place in juice and bring to boil; 
pack hot without the addition of water; or 
slice or put in whole by cold-pack method in 
sterilized jars or enamel cans. In packing 
whole, cover with juice from cutting or 



Canning 75 

squeezed from some fresh tomatoes; add a 
teaspoonful of salt to each quart can or jar. 
Process for 25 minutes at 212 degrees, or for 
10 minutes at 10 pounds pressure. 

Turnip: Wash and pare small turnips ; cut 
into cubes ; bring to a boil in plain water for 
about 30 minutes and pass through colander; 
add salt and white pepper to taste ; and pack 
hot. Process for 20 minutes at 15 pounds 
pressure. 

To put up by cold-pack method, prepare 
and process as for Carrots. 

Turnip-tops: See under Greens. 

DIRECTIONS FOR SPECIAL VARIETIES OF FRUIT 

Apples: Tart varieties are the best for 
canning. All bruised spots, if any, should be 
removed. The skins and cores will make 
about one-third of the apple. If a consider- 
able number are being put up, this should 
not be wasted but used for making some other 
fruit products— one of the jellies or preserves 
described in Chapter VI. The apples, after 



76 Save It for Winter 

being peeled, should be cut into quarters or 
eighths. If a paring and coring machine is 
being used, remove the slicing blade. The 
perfect quarters may be put up by themselves 
and the broken pieces or small parts kept 
separate. 

The fruit may be packed into sterilized con- 
tainers, after being prepared, but it is best to 
put the pieces thus prepared into a cold, 
slightly salt, dip first. 

Pears: The fruit selected should be of 
good size, even shape, and fully ripe, but not 
soft. The Bartlett is a suitable variety for 
canning and is one of the best. Peel and core 
carefully, and, if there is very much differ- 
ence in size, grade. To prevent peeled fruits 
from turning brown, place in water as soon 
as peeled, until ready to be packed in con- 
tainers. Pack carefully, fill with hot syrup, 
and seal tin cans or loosely cover glass jars. 
Process, according to time shown in table. 

Peaches: Only thoroughly ripe fruit 
should be used, if the best quality is wanted. 



Canning 77 

If a considerable number are to be put up, it 
will be worth while to get a special peach- 
peeling knife and a peach-pitting spoon — one 
which can be used to cut the pit out of cling- 
stone varieties before the fruit is cut in half. 
Either a forty or sixty per cent, syrup may 
be used to cover the fruit in the jars, but the 
latter is better for a high quality product. 
Small pieces, or less desirable varieties, may 
be covered with a lower grade syrup, or even 
with plain water if the product is to be used 
for making pies and so forth. The clingstone 
varieties are of a much firmer texture than 
the freestones, and, for that reason require 
a little longer period of processing. Whereas 
twenty-five minutes is sufficient for the free- 
stones, the clings should be given about thirty 
— hot water bath time. The fruits vary 
greatly, however, and they cannot be success- 
fully sterilized by rule-of-thumb. Make a 
careful examination of the product in the first 
few cans heated, to see if the texture desired 
has been obtained. 



78 Save It for Winter 

Cherries: Cherries may be canned either 
with or without pitting ; some people like the 
bitter almond flavor which results if the pits 
are left in. A machine for pitting can be 
obtained at a low price at any hardware store. 
Wash thoroughly in cold water to get the 
fruit perfectly clean. If a pitting machine 
is used, the flesh will be more or less bruised 
and should be canned immediately j in enam- 
eled lined cans ; cover with a forty per cent, 
syrup, cold. Cover jars or seal cans ; and, if 
cans are used, exhaust for 15 minutes in 150 
degrees F. water. Then seal and sterilize, 
or steam at 212 degrees for 20 minutes. If 
using glass jars, sterilize at 212 degrees for 
35 minutes. 

Plums: Carefully wash and grade the 
fruit. Fill jars or cans (only enameled lined, 
as plain tin is not safe) and cover with hot 
40 or 50 per cent, syrup. Cover, and sterilize 
at 212 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes, depending 
upon the firmness of the fruit. Sterilize the 
jars for 30 minutes in water. 



Canning 79 

Soft Fruits and Berries. — Including Black- 
berries, Raspberries, Dewberries, Goose- 
berries, Grapes, Huckleberries and 
Strawberries 

Prepare fruit carefully, and rinse off with 
cold water. Remove from strainer or colan- 
der with ladle and pack carefully in steril- 
ized jars, or cans. Add hot syrup, at once. 
Cover each jar or completely seal each can 
as it is filled. (Only enameled cans should 
be employed for highly acid products.) After 
sterilizing, as per time table, wrap each jar 
carefully before storing, to prevent bleach- 
ing. 

Cranberries and gooseberries may be put 
up without the use of syrup, in glass, or in 
enameled cans. After preparing and pack- 
ing, cover with boiled water and sterilize at 
212 degrees F. for 25 minutes. 

Straivberries: To prepare an extra good 
quality, in canning, use glass, or enameled 
cans ; grade the berries carefully ; and wash 
and place in kettle with an equal volume of 



80 Save It for Winter 

sugar. Cook down very slowly until the 
syrup will test 30 degrees Baume. Drain off 
surplus syrup and fill into hot containers; 
cover and sterilize cans for 5 minutes at 212 
degrees, and jars for 10. If strawberries 
are sterilized without previous cooking in the 
containers, they will shrink very badly. 

Fruit Juices: A product which is very 
often wasted is the juice of small quantities 
of fruit that cannot be used advantageously 
for canning, or from the imperfect fruits and 
overripe fruits taken out when canning or 
drying. 

Press out the juice, drain, and heat in 
agate-proof kettles to 110 degrees. Pour into 
sterilized jars, or bottles. If using jars, fol- 
low directions given for the various fruits. 
If using bottles, cover up first with cotton 
stoppers, pressed well into the necks, and 
sterilize in boiling water up to the neck for 
40 minutes at 165 degrees. Remove and press 
corks into place immediately, and dip the 
cork into paraffin or wax to seal securely. 



C arming 81 



DIEECTIONS FOR MAKING SYRUP 

A syrup of any desired strength or den- 
sity may be obtained by carefully measuring 
the sugar and water. The following table 
shows the per cent, of sugar, the reading by 
a Baume tester, and the proportion of sugar 
and water. The Baume tester is a hydrom- 
eter which shows the density of any liquid in 
which it is floated. The Brix and the Balling 
testers work on the same principle, but have 
scales which show the per cent, of sugar in 
the liquid, instead of the density. 

Sugar Syrups 

Per cent, of sugar Baumfi Weight of sugar 

(Bnx or Balling) Degrees Per 1 gal. of Water 

6 2.8 Gibs. 7oz. 

10 5.5 15 

15 8.3 1 8 

20 11.1 2 2 

25 13.8 2 13 

30 16.5 3 10 

35 19.2 4 7 

40 21.9 5 10 

45 24.6 6 14 

50 27.2 8 6 

55 29.8 10 4 

60 32.4 12 10 

65 34.9 15 11 



82 



Save It for Winter 



TIME TABLE FOR VEGETABLE AND 
FRUIT CANNING 



Processing* 



Vegetable 



Asparagus 

Beans, wax 

Beans, stringless 

Beans, Lima 

Beets 

Brussels Sprouts 

Cabbage 

Carrots 

Cauliflower 

Corn, sweet 

Dandelion 

Egg plant 

Endive 

Greens 

Hominy 

Mushrooms 

Mustard 

Okra 

Onions 

Parsnips 

Peas 

Peppers (green) 

Peppers (sweet) 

Pumpkin 

Salsify 

Sauerkraut 

Spinach , 

Squash 

Sweet Potatoes , 

Tomatoes 

Turnips , 

Turnip tops (young, ten 

der) 

Vegetable combination. . , 



Blanching 



15 
to 10 
to 10 
to 10 

5 
to 10 
to 10 

5 

3 

5 

15 

to 10 

15 

15 

3 

5 
to 10 
to 10 
to 10 

5 
to 10 
to 10 
to 10 

3 

5 

3 
15 

3 

5 

1^ 
5 



15 

5 to 10 



180 

180 

180 

180 

90 

120 

120 

120 

180 

240 

120 

120 

120 

120 

120 

90 

120 

120 

180 

90 

180 

180 

120 

120 

90 

120 

120 

129 

90 

45 

90 

120 
180 






90 
90 
90 
120 
80 
90 
90 
80 
40 
120 
90 
90 
90 
90 
90 
80 
90 
90 
120 
80 
120 
90 
90 
90 
80 
90 
90 
90 
80 
18 
80 

90 
120 



C3 on 



3 ^ 



60 40 
60 40 



60 

60 

60 

60 

60 

60 

30 

90 

60 

60 

60 

60 

60 

50 

60 

60 

60 

60 

60 

60 

60 

60 

60 

60 

60 

60 

60 

15 

60 

60 
60 



40 

40 

40 

40 

40 

40 

20 

60 

40 

40 

40 

40 

40 

30 

40 

40 

40 

40 

40 

40 

40 

40 

40 

40 

40 

40 

40 

10 

40 

40 
45 



Canning 



83 



TIME TABLE FOR VEGETABLE AND FRUIT CANNING— (Cont'd.) 







] 


'recessing* 






Vegetable 


Blanching 


O 03 


u 

OS's 


si 

w m 

-M %^ 
CO a 

18 
60 

8 
10 
10 
10 
10 
10 
10 
10 
10 
10 
10 
10 

8 
10 

8 

10 
10 


01 

SO 


Cream of Tomato Soup . . 
Vegetable Soup and all 

Soup Combination 

Fruits 

Apples 




30 

180 

20 
16 
16 
16 
16 
16 
16 
16 
16 
16 
16 
16 
20 
16 
20 

20 
16 


20 

75 

12 
12 
12 
12 
12 
12 
12 
12 
12 
12 
12 
12 
12 
12 
12 

15 
12 


10 




45 


Ito 


1^ 

2 


6 


Apricots 


5 


Blackberries. . ... 


5 


Blueberries. 




5 


Cherries 




5 


Currants 




5 


Dewberries 




5 


Figs 

Gooseberries 

Grapes 

Huckleberries 


1 to 
Ito 


2 
2 


5 
5 
5 


:::::: i 


5 


Peaches 

Pears 

Plums 


Ito 


2 

1^ 


5 
6 
5 


Quinces 

Preserves, after prepara- 
tion and filling 

Raspberries 


IH 


6 




5 









Notes 

Time for Different Altitudes. This time table is based upon the 
one-quart pack and upon fresh products at altitudes up to 1000 feet. For 
higher altitudes increase the time 10 per cent, for each additional 500 feet. 

For example: Sterilize tomatoes in wash boiler 45 minutes up to 1000 
feet elevation; 10% longer or 50 minutes, between 1000 and 1500 feet ele- 
vation; 10% longer or 55 minutes, between 1500 and 2000 feet elevation, 
etc. 

* Proper Steam Pressure. When processing fruits in steam-pressure 
canners, not over 5 pounds of steam pressure should be used. When proc- 
essing vegetables, do not use over 15 pounds of pressure. 

Shrinkage During Sterilization. Shrinkage may occur during ster- 
ilization because of improper and insufficient blanching and cold-dipping, 
careless packing, poor grading, steriUzing for too long a period, or lack of 
judgment in the amount and size of product put into the container. This 
will have no effect on the keeping of the product if thoroughly sterilized 
and the jar sealed. 



84 Save It for Winter 



DIRECTIONS FOR MAKING BRINE 

As brines are used, with or without sugar, 
in the majority of products canned, the mak- 
ing of a brine of a suitable strength is quite 
an important item. The number of ounces 
of salt which should be added to a gallon of 
plain water to get a brine of any desired 
strength is shown in the following table. 

Brines 

Per cent, of Ounces of salt 

salt in brine per gal. of .water 

1 IH 

2 2% 

3 4 

4 bH 

5 6% 

10 1414 

15 22^ 



CHAPTER V 

DEYING AND DEHYDKATING 

As we have already seen, in considering 
the saving of food for winter by drying, the 
moisture content is lowered and the sugar 
content raised to a point where bacteria, 
yeast and mold find a condition or environ- 
ment in which they cannot thrive sufficiently 
to cause the food to spoil. 

The first problem in the practice of food 
drying, therefore, is to determine what is the 
best method to get rid of the surplus mois- 
ture which is to be extracted from the food 
product to be saved. The first method com- 
ing to mind, probably, would be to put it in 
the oven and dry it to a crisp. Experiments 
have shown, however, that in the drying of 
food products to save them, two things must 
be guarded against : first, if they are made 
too dry, the cell-structure is altered and they 

85 



86 Save It for Winter 

cannot be bronght back to their original con- 
dition when wanted for use. Second, if the 
water is extracted by heating them too sud- 
denly, or at too high a temperature, the flavor 
of the food will be altered. 

What should be aimed at, then, is a method 
which will extract just sufficient of the water 
from the product to make it keep perfectly 
and to do this with as little change as possible 
in the product itself: that is, injuring the 
product as little as possible physically and 
keeping it at as low a temperature as possi- 
ble to avoid scorching, charring, or even cook- 
ing it. These facts should always be kept in 
mind in preparing foods for keeping for win- 
ter by drying. 

Few persons have any conception of the 
amount of water which the average fruit or 
vegetable contains. If all of the water should 
be suddenly extracted from a potato or apple 
which you held in your hand, there would be 
nothing left but a small hard sphere about 
the size and weight of a large marble, or a 



Drying and Dehydrating 87 



''skeleton'^ potato or apple about as heavy 
as a puff-ball. 

The drying of fruits and vegetables was 
formerly done quite extensively as a method 
of saving food for winter in the home; this 
disappeared to a large extent with the advent 
of canning, because the methods of drying 
then in use were available only for a limited 
number of things and did not give a uniform 
product. This, however, was due to the meth- 
ods used and not to the practice of drying 
vegetables. In Europe, even before the war, 
vegetables were saved by drying on a much 
larger scale than in this country. Without 
doubt one of the secrets of Germany's being 
able to maintain herself against starvation, 
notwithstanding that she did not have access 
to the outside world in obtaining food for her 
millions of population, was the fact that the 
surplus of vegetables, and especially of the 
tremendous crops of potatoes, had been dried 
and stored for future use for years. Since 
the war, an important part of the food con- 
servation program in every European coun- 



88 Save It for Winter 

try has been the drying of summer surpluses 
of fruits and vegetables for winter use. The 
importance of this method has been so fully 
realized by the various governments that they 
have taken it under their direct control, build- 
ing enormous municipal drying plants and 
establishing community dryers where they 
would be of the most use, and even sending 
portable drying outfits from one farm to an- 
other to save all the available surpluses. Im- 
mense contracts have been given concerns in 
the United States and in Canada to supply de- 
hydrated vegetables for the use of the civil 
population and of the armies in Europe. 

It is not merely as a war measure that the 
form of saving food for winter by drying 
will be of importance. Without doubt within 
the next few years the drying of many vege- 
tables will assume almost as much impor- 
tance, both commercially and in the home, as 
*^ canned goods*' now do. With some vege- 
tables, and especially where there is plenty 
of room and suitable conditions for storing, 
it is not supposed that drying will take the 













'• c 

tf c 
3 rt 






»3 g 










fl 


■ — ; 


j; 


-f] 






















« 


T 


-C 


K 



5 ^ 

4i c 



_^5._^ 



Drying and Dehydrating 89 

place of canning and of winter storing; but 
there is hardly a home where it cannot be 
used to advantage for some things. Dried 
products require very much less expense for 
containers, such as glass jars, cans, etc., than 
canned products, and they require very much 
less room for their storage. The dry prod- 
ucts can be kept in wax paper and other con- 
tainers that could not be used for canned 
goods. They can be exposed to freezing with- 
out the danger of breakage and loss. An- 
other point of great importance to the family 
which, as many do, spends the summer in the 
country is that the dry products can be put 
up during the summer or in vacation weeks 
and easily taken back to the city; whereas 
canned products involve great risks and ex- 
pense in transportation, even if there is a 
place to store them after they are brought 
back to the city. 

While all these things make a difference to 
the woman living in the country, they are of 
still greater importance to the city house- 
keeper. With her, usually, storage room is 



90 Save It for Winter 

at a great premium, and often kitchen space 
also is cramped. The effort necessary to pnt 
up any amount of canned products causes 
her to depend almost wholly upon the store 
for her winter vegetables, either fresh or 
canned. The city housewife, on the other 
hand, usually has the best of facilities for 
drying products by modern methods. In most 
homes electricity is available and without that 
the gas range, with its easy and accurate 
control of heat, makes drying a compara- 
tively simple matter. Even though only small 
quantities be dried at a time, the total at the 
end of the season will be a very considerable 
amount of food stored for winter use. 

THE VAKIOUS METHODS OF DRYING AND EXPLANA- 
TION OF TEEMS USED 

While the drying of vegetables is a general 
term which applies to this method of keep- 
ing food products, regardless of the details 
of how the work is done, the newer terms of 
evaporation and dehydrating have come into 



Drying and Dehydrating 91 

use, and through common usage have come 
to express or stand for different methods of 
drying. In the following pages they are em- 
ployed with more specific meanings, as fol- 
lows: 

Drying : This refers to the practice of sun 
drying, or drying by exposure to the sun. 

Evaporating: This refers to the method of 
drying by artificial heat. 

Dehydrating: This refers to the method of 
removing the surplus moisture by artificial 
air-hlast. The third term, however, often in- 
cludes the second, as drying by a blast or 
current of air is more rapid where the air 
is heated. The air, however, is the chief 
agency in removing the moisture and the tem- 
perature used is usually much less than that 
where evaporation alone is done, as the air- 
current method naturally tends to keep the 
temperature down. 

Dehydrating, or the new method of drying, 
has, like the newer methods in canning vege- 
tables, brought the introduction of some 
newer terms which are not as yet universally 



92 Save It for Winter 

known to the housewife. Some of these are 
as follows: 

Preparing: Getting the vegetables ready 
for drying by carefully sorting; discarding 
all that are old and tough or injured, care- 
fully washing or scrubbing, etc. 

Blanching : Many vegetables and fruits 
need this preliminary treatment for drying 
or dehydrating as well as for canning. 

Dipping: Plunging into cold water after 
blanching, to start the skins or fix the color 
and flavor. 

Slicing: This is a very important part of 
fixing vegetables by the drying method. They 
must be cut into thin pieces or small parts 
to dry out evenly. Were the attempt made to 
dry them in large sections, they would merely 
wilt or shrivel on the surface, while the in- 
terior would be little changed ; in fact, one of 
the chief reasons for the existence of the 
skin on most fruits and vegetables is to pre- 
vent evaporation. The vegetables should be 
sliced thin enough, but not too thin — % to % 
of an inch is about right. This will be thin 




Tl.c Hrst stt^p in preparing the produft is to put il. otter .-Icaaiu- a.ul 
cutting, in rhoospolotl, (or a wire basket) for "blanehin-." 




It i.s then dipped into boihng water lor the re 
quired time to blanch it. 



Drying and Dehydrating 93 

enough to expose a large amount of surface 
to the air to dry, without giving a product 
that cannot be handled without sticking to- 
gether and being in general ^ ^ messy. ' * When 
sliced too thin or cut into too small pieces the 
product is likely to lose its flavor and also fail 
to **come back^' when re-soaked for use, so 
that it can be used to advantage in cooking. 

Cutting and Shredding : Vegetables which 
are not suitable for slicing are prepared by 
cutting into small cubes, or in some cases 
are cut into fine shreds. Vegetables which 
have to be partly cooked before drying, or 
in some cases, prepared by * ^pulping,'' or 
passing them through the meat grinder, to 
prepare them for drying. 

Drying: Drying out the prepared product 
in the apparatus which has been prepared 
to utilize either sun heat, artificial heat, or 
air-blast. 

Conditioning: After the product has been 
dried to as nearly the condition wanted as 
possible, it will be found in most cases that 
the degree of dryness obtained will not be ab- 



94 Save It for Winter 

solutely uniform throughout the batch. To 
make certain that all parts are dry enough, 
and to make the degree of moisture as uni- 
form as possible it is *' conditioned*' by keep- 
ing the product in shallow open boxes for a 
few days, and occasionally turning it over 
or changing it from one tray to another. If 
the product is found to be not sufficiently 
dried out, as is sometimes the case, it is re- 
turned to the drier for further treatment. 

Containers: Containers in which the fin- 
ished dried product is to be stored and kept 
for future use may be glass jars, crocks, or 
specially prepared paper, or in fact anything 
which is convenient or may be covered tight 
enough to prevent any insects or worms from 
getting into the product. These containers 
do not have to be, as in canning, absolutely 
air-tight. 

Success in drying, evaporating, or dehydrat- 
ing vegetables or fruit will depend to a very 
great extent on having apparatus which is 
adapted to the work that is to be done. This 
does not mean that it is necessary to invest a 



I 




■Mi 



55, 



.C3^ i) 



-2 



Drying and Dehydrating 95 

considerable amount in equipment before 
drying can be undertaken. There are now 
manufactured for home and community use a 
number of machines of various sizes that 
cover a wide range of prices. Many of these 
are not very expensive and are very conven- 
ient to use, and efficient. It is entirely feasi- 
ble, however, to construct an apparatus, if 
one is at all handy with tools, that will answer 
for home purposes. Herewith are illustrated 
three types of driers of home-made construc- 
tion. The first of these is suitable for the 
sun-drying process of fruits or vegetables; 
the second, for evaporation by artificial heat ; 
and the third for dehydrating by air-current. 
These show plainly the principles on which 
the work is accomplished. Other machines 
are illustrated and described in the chapter 
on equipment. 

Drying in the Sun: Except where the cli- 
mate is such that long periods of hot dry 
weather without rain or heavy dews may be 
counted upon, sun drying is uncertain unless 
some means is taken to provide protection 



96 



Save It for Winter 



from occasional showers and also from blow- 
ing dnst, insects, etc. A contrivance of this 




A home-made frame drier with glass top. The removable tray or drawer 
has a fine mesh wire bottom. 

kind is shown in the illustration. This shows 
a frame covered with a **Baby'' or ** Junior" 



Drying and Dehydrating 97 

sash, such as are used in many home gar- 
dens. A larger-sized drier can be made to 
accommodate a standard cold-frame sash; 
or if one has a suitable place for doing the 
work the products may be simply spread in 
the bright sunshine under cover, on pieces 
of muslin or paper. Drying may be done in 
trays alone, of convenient size for the prod- 
uct to be handled, but this process will neces- 
sitate much more careful watching, covering 
up, etc. 

Evaporation by Heat: The heat of the cook 
stove can be used — often in connection with 
cooking — so that no additional expense is 
necessary for fuel, for evaporating. The sim- 
plest equipment for this work is the use of 
large plates or pans in the oven, with the 
door open, or at the back of the stove. These, 
however, are inconvenient and risky. It will 
be better either to get a commercial drier or 
to make one at home similar to that illus- 
trated. This is merely a box on metal legs, 
containing a number of light trays, which 
may be set upon the stove, the heated air 




A hon.e.:nade stove drie, ^th .movab.e^^re tray o, rack. Out«d, i. 



98 



Drying and Dehydrating 



99 



passing up through the trays and around the 
product. There are many other inexpensive 
driers on the market for use over coal or 
gas stoves ; the smaller sizes may be bought 
for a few dollars each. Before attempting 
to make a home-made 
drier, one should be satis- 
fied that he cannot find 
among these something 
which would serve the 
purpose better than a 
home-made affair, at little | 
or no more cost, all things 
considered. 

Dehydrating by Air-cur- 
rent: For this purpose, in 
the home an electric fan is 
usually made use of. This has proved very 
efficient, provided suitable trays for keeping 
the products separated, so that the air-cur- 
rent will pass through them most effectu- 
ally, are arranged. The effectiveness of the 
fan method of drying as compared to hot air 
over the stove will be surprising to those 




A convenient type of small 
stove drier. 



100 Save It for Winter 

who try it for the first time. The cost of 
running the fan in many instances will be 
but eight to ten cents a day. Many things 
can be dried sufficiently within a few hours. 
The arrangement of the fan and trays is 
shown in the accompanying illustration. The 
fan where used is likely to prove more satis- 
factory than heat drying, the color and flavor 
being better preserved, and the product 
more uniformly made. 

THE PROCESS OF DRYING 

(1) Obtain the products, as for canning, 
as fresh, young and tender as possible. Pick 
over and grade carefully; wash all products 
that may need it and thoroughly clean and 
peel or scape root products to avoid possi- 
bility of strong acid flavor in the dry prod- 
ucts. 

(2) Slice, cut, shred or **pulp" the prod- 
uct, as may be required. 

(3) Blanch, or par-boil and cold-dip, as re- 
quired, and place in trays ready for drying. 

(4) Dry carefully for the required length 




Slicing or futtiiig the product to 
be dehydrated ii« a vital part of the 
process. A rotary slicin"; machine 
like this, which is being used to cut 
sweet potatoes into strips, is a great 
time saver. 




An electric fan and home-made wooden trays complete this simple but effective 
"dehydrating plant," in which several products may be dried quickly at one 
time. 



Drying and Dehydrating 101 

of time — examinations should be frequent 
and occasional turning may be necessary. Be 
sure to keep sun-dried products carefully pro- 
tected at all time from dust or moths. The 
product should be taken in each night before 
sunset and put out each morning after the 
dew is off. There should be a protecting 
cover of light cheese-cloth — ^mosquito netting 
is not fine enough — ^which should be kept over 
the product to prevent moths or other insects 
from depositing their eggs, with the result 
that a large part or all of the product may 
be spoiled afterward while in storage. The 
** Indian meal moth,'' which is about % of 
an inch in length and is gray and copper- 
brown in color, is the insect which causes 
most injury to dry vegetables and fruits. A 
close second is the *^fake moth,'' about the 
same size, but a darker gray. Both are night 
flyers and are likely to attack the product 
about dusk. The eggs hatch within ten days, 
with a new generation about every two 
months thereafter; so that just from a few 



102 Save It for Winter 

eggs originally the whole product may be 
completely spoiled. 

In evaporating by heat, care should be 
taken to avoid too high a temperature at first, 
as this may cause the freshly cut surfaces to 
be sealed up, with the results that the pieces 
do not dry out evenly and a poor product re-' 
suits. Start the heat slowly and raise it grad- 
ually to 140 to 150 degrees. This is high 
enough to do the drying as rapidly as it 
should be done, and will also destroy any in- 
sect eggs which may be present. To keep 
track of the degree of heat in the drier a ther- 
mometer, preferably an oven thermometer, 
should be used. If you do the work without a 
thermometer, it is risky, as the temperature 
varies rapidly and scorching may be the re- 
sult. 

When dehydrating by air-current, for rea- 
sons already explained, a high temperature 
in the drying of vegetables or fruit is objec- 
tionable. They will not dry, even if a corre- 
spondingly longer time be given them, with- 
out a fairly rapid movement of the air about 



Drying and Dehydrating 103 

them. This is because the moisture evaporat- 
ing from the freshly cut surfaces soon satu- 
rates the air, which acts like a blanket and 
checks the evaporation. The result is that the 
right conditions for the growth of molds are 
created, and the product is soon spoiled. If, 
however, the moisture-saturated air is re- 



A small open pan evaporator of the double-boiler type. The water in 
the bottom pan prevents scorching the product and makes more uniform 
drying possible. 

moved — by having a current of air blown 
over the vegetable — as fast as it is saturated, 
evaporation will continue at a rapid and 
steady rate until the product is uniformly 
and sufficiently dry. With large commercial 
evaporators, great care has to be taken not to 
take out too much of the moisture ; but there 
is little danger of this with the home air-blast 
equipment. The layer of products should not 



104 Save It for Winter 

be so thick that they will not dry through 
evenly, and, if necessary, should be stirred up 
or turned over occasionally. 

(5) Remove from drier. Experience only, 
in this as in many other things, will teach 
the operator just when the right condition or 
degree of dryness has been obtained. In 
commercial dehydrating, from seven to twelve 
per cent, of the water content is allowed to 
remain in the product. There is no way of 
determining this in the home drier; but one 
of the tests, to show when this condition has 
been reached, is to snap one of the pieces and 
see if it is impossible to press any of the 
juice from the freshly cut end. The natural 
** grain'' of the vegetable or fruit should also 
have disappeared ; but it should not be so dry 
as to be absolutely brittle; it should be, 
rather, slightly leathery. 

(6) It is necessary also, to get a product 
that will keep well and that will not mold, 
to have it dried uniformly through and 
through. When the product has been dried 
sufficiently, as nearly as can be judged, ^^con- 



Drying and Dehydrating 105 



dition" it for a day or two, if necessary re- 
drying all parts that appear to be still too 
moist. 

(7) Put the product in the containers in 
which it is to be kept. If the product has been 
sun dried, it should be sterilized before being 
stored by heating to a 
temperature of about 
140 degrees F. If dried 
by artificial heat or air- 
current, the product 
should be heated again 
for a short time after 
conditioning, as an add- 
ed precaution. All con- 
tainers for dried prod- 
ucts need not be air- 
tight, but they must be 
tight enough to protect the contents from 
outside moisture. Having small containers 
is of advantage in many ways. A pint jar 
of the dried products will go several times 
as far as a pint of canned products. It is 
advisable not to have the package so large 




A self-contained evaporator 
of larger capacity for use out- 
of-doors. The drier or evap- 
orator is mounted on the top 
of_ a simple stove. These 
driers are large enough for 
commercial work. 



106 Save It for Winter 

that the contents, after it is once opened, will 
not be used in a comparatively short time. In 
case of insects, also, the damage is likely to 
be localized if small containers are used. For 
many things paper bags make satisfactory 
containers if they are filled only about half- 
full, the upper portion of the bag being 
twisted tight, bent over and tied with a string. 
A wide flat brush and melted paraffin may be 
used to paint the bags over to protect them 
against penetration of moisture; or paper 
bags may be used and these kept in tin or 
other containers to protect them, one bag be- 
ing taken out at a time. An ordinary tin pail 
or lard pail will accommodate a number of 
bags, sufficient for a good many meals. 

Label everything carefully ; labeling is im- 
portant even in canning, but it is easier to 
distinguish what the canned goods are than 
dried products. Have the labels ready to tag 
everything as it is put up ; and until you are 
familiar with the work of drying or dehydrat- 
ing, it will be well to put on the labels also, 






■ 


« 


^ 


■% 


i^^^^K^^r ^^-4^ 


»to 






■Bj 


I^^^^^^^^^^V ^^p^«2,»«. 4ia»'''v^lQ 


^g 


fi^ 




^■P 


^^^H^^^^^^k. ^l^^r^i^'ls^^sEs 


W^ 


^ 


nJ 


HP^fe 


^^^l^^i^^di 


^^m 


^^ 




^H^HE'* 


^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^H^^^^^^^^^^^l^^k^ -~. 


III in 


^g^^k 




^^^^El^^''' 




';LSlll 




HH 


1 




^^Kc 




fflHHI 






HWISuL^ 




Dehydrated products — white potatoes, string beans, and peas — ready to he jjut in 

containers for storinic. 



Drying and Dehydrating 107 

data as to the length of time the product was 
dried, etc., as a guide for future work. 

(8) Examine before storing. Products 
which seem perfectly dry when put away, 
sometimes will be wet after they are put into 
the containers — with the result that they will 
begin to mold almost immediately and be 
spoiled. As a precaution against this, a sam- 
ple of all products put away should be ex- 
amined carefully about twenty-four hours 
after being packed; if there is any sign of 
moisture being present still, the batch must 
be put back for further drying. 

INSTKUCTIONS FOR DIFFERENT VEGETABLES AND 

FRUITS 

Keeping in mind all that has been said in 
regard to the necessity for getting the prod- 
uct while young and tender, and using it im- 
mediately, the various garden vegetables may 
be dried according to the following directions. 
The time given is approximate, as the time 
required will vary and the product should be 
carefully watched during the process of dry- 



108 Save It for Winter 

ing, and taken off or kept on until it seems 
to be in the right condition, regardless of the 
length of time it has been under treatment. 

Beans: Prepare carefully, snap or slice 
into 1/2 or 1 inch pieces, and dry. 

Or: Grade carefully, picking out the 
youngest and tenderest to be dried whole. 
Slice remainder into 14 to 1 inch lengths; 
blanch six to ten minutes, with a teaspoonful 
of soda added to each gallon of water, as 
this helps to keep the color. Dry in towel or 
breeze to remove the surface moisture, and 
then evaporate or dehydrate for two hours 
or more, depending on the maturity of prod- 
uct. Give a temperature of 110 degrees, rais- 
ing gradually to 145 degrees. 

Or: Whole tender pods may be strung on 
a coarse strong thread and the strings dried 
above the stove or out of doors in the sun ; it 
is not as satisfactory as either of the two pre- 
ceding methods. 

Lima beans ^ gathered while still young and 
plump, may be dried to give * Afresh'' beans 
in the winter. Eemove from pods, wash and 



Drying and Dehydrating 109 

blanch from ^yq to ten minutes, depending 
upon size and maturity. Surface dry and 
then evaporate or dehydrate for from 3 to 
3I/2 hours, at a temperature of 110 rising to 
145 degrees. 

Dry shell beans, peas, and cow peas may be 
treated in the same way. They may be made 
safe for winter storing by heating for ten 
minutes or so, beginning at 120 and rising to 
180 degrees F.; this heat treatment will de- 
stroy insect eggs which otherwise are likely 
to hatch and destroy the stored products. 
(The germination of the product is likewise 
destroyed, so that it cannot be used for seed.) 

Beets: Scrub thoroughly or peel, cut into 
slices about % inch thick, and dry. 

Or: Boil in skins until nearly done; dip 
in cold water, remove skins, and slice or cube. 
Dry 2% to 3 hours, at 110 rising to 150 de- 
grees F. 

Brussels Sprouts: Remove stems and 
loose outer leaves, slice, blanch — with a pinch 
of soda in water — and dry as for cabbage. 

Cabbage: Use firm heads of cabbage, re- 



110 Save It for Winter 

move loose outer leaves, and the inside core, 
slice remainder with sharp knife or krout 
cutter and dry. 

Or: Prepare as above, shred into slices 2 
or 3 inches long; blanch for ten minutes ; and 
dry for 3 hours at 110 to 145 degrees F. 

Carrots J Kohl-rahi, Salsify and Celeriac: 
Wash, peel, cut into slices about % iiich thick 
and dry. 

Or: Scrape, pare, slice and blanch for 
about five minutes ; dry off surface moisture 
and dry for 2% to 3 hours in the same tem- 
perature as for beets. 

Cauliflower: Use firm, clean heads; cut 
out the individual flowers; remove stems; 
blanch for six minutes ; dry for 2 to 3 hours 
at 110 to 145 degrees. The product will turn 
black but will regain its natural color when 
re-soaked. Excellent for omelettes and 
soups. 

Com, Sweet: Blanch to set the milk in the 
kernels — two to five minutes. Eemove ker- 
nels carefully, and dry, stirring occasionally 
to get an evenly cured product. 



Drying and Dehydrating 111 

Or: Boil or steam to set the milk thor- 
oughly — eight to ten minutes — with a tea- 
spoonful of salt to improve the flavor. Cut 
the grains crosswise with a sharp, flexible 
knife, and remove remainder with scraper, 
being careful to avoid husks and chaff. Dry 
3 to 4 hours, at 110 to 145 degrees. 

Both these methods are for either evapo- 
rating or dehydrating. To dry in the sun, 
cure in the oven for ten to fifteen minutes and 
then put on sun trays or in a sun-drier. 

Field corn, if taken when tender and suit- 
able for roasting, may be cured in the same 
way, giving a fairly palatable product. 

Greens (Spinach, Swiss Chard, Mustard, 
etc.): Prepare carefully. While the whole 
leaves can be dried, a better product may be 
obtained by slicing before drying — especially 
beet tops, swiss chard, celery, etc., which have 
a thick stalk or stem as well as the leaf. Cut 
into sections about i^ inch long. Blanch, if 
desired, to help retain color. 

Herbs: Parsley, mint, sage^ celery-tops, 
and so forth, are easily dried. Blanching is 



112 Save It for Winter 

not necessary. Dry either whole or after 
slicing. 

Okra: Blanch three minutes, with soda 
added to water — a teaspoonful to a gallon. 
Dry from 2 to 3 hours at 110 to 140 degrees. 
Young fruits may be dried whole. Older ones 
should be cut, after removing stem, into 
slices % to 1^ inch thick. 

Young and tender fruits may be dried on 
a string as suggested for peppers. 

Onions and Leeks: Remove loose, outside 
skin with roots and tops. Slice (under water 
if desired) into % inch pieces, loosen rings, 
and dry at once. 

Or: Wash, peel and slice and blanch for 
five minutes. Remove ; dry otf surface mois- 
ture, and dry from 2% to 3 hours at 110 ris- 
ing to 140 degrees F. Leeks, on account of 
their different shapes, may be sliced into l^ 
inch strips, instead of being cut across. 

Peppers: Place peppers in pan in oven 
until skin loosens, or steam until skin is soft. 
Remove skin; cut in two; remove seed; and 
dry very slowly at a temperature of 110 in- 



Drying and Dehydrating 113 



creasing to 140 degrees F. Very small varie- 
ties may be dried whole in the sun, or partly 
in the sun and finished in the drier, or strung 
on a string as suggested for beans. 

Potatoes: Either white or sweet potatoes 
may be easily dried. This method is particu- 
larly good for sweet potatoes, which are 
rather hard to keep under ordinary conditions 
as compared to white potatoes. 

Scrub thoroughly and boil or steam until 
nearly done. Eemove jackets, and either pass 
through a meat grinder or a ricer, or slice into 
pieces about l^ inch square. (See illustra- 
tion facing page 100. ) Dry until quite brittle. 
Toast very slightly in open oven before stor- 
ing. 

Rhubarb: Wash, skin leaf-stalks, and cut 
into pieces % to % inch in length. (Some 
people prefer the skin left on, which gives 
the rhubarb a pink appearance when cooked.) 
Blanch as briefly as desired to help retain 
color. Rhubarb, being one of the most pro- 
lific of all the garden vegetables, is usually 
wasted. This is an easy way to save it. 



114 Save It for Winter 

Soup Mixtures: In drying, the different 
vegetables are not prepared together, as they 
are in canning, but each is dried separately. 
The dried products may be mixed in the pro- 
portions wanted, and stored in that way. 
Carrots, onions, celery, okra, potatoes, and 
cabbage are the vegetables most often used 
for this purpose. The proportions may be 
arranged, of course, according to taste. 

Squash and Pumpkins: Eemove seeds and 
centers. Cut into pieces and pare these, and 
cut again into small strips or shreds about 
% inch thick and 2 inches long. Dry thor- 
oughly. 

Or: Cut into % inch strips; blanch for 3 
minutes; and dry for 3 to 4 hours, the tem- 
perature rising from 110 to 140 degrees F. 

FRUITS 

While commercial dried fruits are for the 
most part sun-dried, nevertheless they are 
equally well suited for evaporating or dehy- 
drating, the latter method usually giving a 
better quality product. 



Drying and Dehydrating 115 

Apples, Pears, and Quinces: These *^hard'' 
fruits are all easily dried, except that in the 
case of apples, very early and sweet varieties 
are not so good as the long-keeping varie- 
ties. 

The simplest method of preparing apples 
is to core, and slice i/4 ^"^^ thick — ^preferably 
with a machine. Dip at once into water, to 
which salt has been added in the proportion 
of eight teaspoonfnls to a gallon. Dry off 
surface moisture, and then spread on papers 
and dry in sun until product has become 
tough and leathery. 

For drying in heat, prepare and cut into 
eighths, putting at once into cold water to 
which salt — one ounce to the gallon — has been 
added. Dry out gradually in a temperature 
of 150 degrees. Allow four or five hours, or 
as much longer as may seem necessary. 

For dehydrating, slice into Vs to i/4 inch 
thick rings, or shred as directed for sweet 
potatoes. 

Pears may be treated in the same manner 
except that they should be steamed for ten 



116 Save It for Winter 

minutes or so before drying. This applies 
also to quinces. 

Cherries: Wash and pit, if a large variety 
is being used. Small cherries may be dried 
with the pits in. Spread out thin and dry 
in sun. 

Or: Wash, rough dry, and spread in very 
thin layers with pits in and dry from 2 to 4 
hours with temperature of 110 to 150 de- 
grees F. 

Peaches: A better product is obtained if 
the fruits are peeled before drying. Eemove 
stones, pits, and cut into halves, or smaller 
pieces if large fruit is being used, and spread 
on trays to dry. In evaporating or dehydrat- 
ing, use same temperature as for apples. 

Plums and Apricots: For plums, remove 
pits, cut into halves, and dry. 

Or: Cover with boiling water; let stand 
for 20 minutes ; drain ; rough dry ; and dry for 
4 to 6 hours, gradually raising the tempera- 
ture from 110 to 150 degrees F. 

Apricots may be treated in the same way. 



Drying and Dehydrating 117 



Only varieties with good, thick solid flesh are 
suitable for drying in this way. 

Raspberries: Prepare carefully, spread 
thinly, and dry until the fruit can be pressed 
between the thumb and finger without mak- 
ing a stain. Do not dry until hard. 

Or: Prepare carefully, spread in thin 
layers, and dry slowly in heat, gradually rais- 
ing the temperature from 110 to 125 degrees 
F. The temperature should not be allowed 
to go above 130 for the first hour or two, 
until the fruit is fairly well dried, as other- 
wise there will be loss of juice by dripping. 
Dry from 2 to 4 hours at 140 degrees. 

Blackberries, dewberries, and huckleberries 
should be given the same treatment. 



118 



Save It for Winter 



Time Table for Blanching and Drying 

The following time table shows blanching time for vegetables and 
the approximate time required for drying vegetables and fruits, with 
temperatures to be used in drying by artificial heat: 



Vegetables 



Asparagus 

Beans, green string 

Beans, Lima (young) . . . 

Beans, wax 

Beets 

Brussels sprouts 

Cabbage 

Carrots 

Cauliflower 

Celery 

Kohlrabi, celeriac and 

salsify 

Leeks 

Okra 

Onions 

Parsnips 

Peas, garden (mature) . . 
Peas, sugar (young) .... 

Peppers 

Pumpkin 

Rhubarb 

Spinach, parsley and 

other herbs 

Summer squash 

Sweet corn 

Swiss chard 

Tomatoes 

Fruits 

Apples 

Apricots 

Berries 

Cherries 

Peaches 

Pears 

Plums 

Quinces 



Blanching 
time 



Minutes 

5 to 10 

6 to 10 

5 to 10 

6 to 10 
Till skin cracks 

6 
10 
6 
6 
3 

6 
5 
3 
5 
6 

3 to 5 

6 

3 

3 

4 to 6 

3 

5 to 10 

3 
To loosen skin 



Drying 
time 



Hours 
4 to 8 

2 to 3 

3 to3>^ 

2 to 3 
2}4 to 3 

3 to 3J^ 
3 

2y2 to 3 
3 to 3)^ 
3 to 4 

2^ to 3 
2y2 to 3 

2 to 3 
2J^ to 3 
2}4 to 3 

3 to 214 
3 to 3>^ 

' " i to 4 ' 



3 
3 to 4 
3 to 4 
3 to 4 



4 to 6 
4 to 6 
4 to 5 
2 to 4 
4 to 6 
4 to 6 
4 to 6 
4 to 6 



Temperature 
(Fahrenheit) 



Degrees 
to 140 
to 145 
to 145 
to 145 
to 150 
to 145 
to 145 
to 150 
to 145 
to 140 

to 150 
to 140 
to 140 
to 140 
to 150 
to 145 
to 145 
to 140 
to 140 
to 145 

to 145 
to 140 
to 145 
to 140 
to 145 



to 150 
to 150 
to 140 
to 150 
to 150 
to 150 
to 150 
to 150 



J 



CHAPTER VI 

PICKLES, PKESERVES AND JELLIES 

With the newer and more efficient methods 
of saving vegetables and fruits by canning 
and by drying, the necessity for the nse of 
pickles, preserves and jellies is to a large ex- 
tent done away with. In other words, it is 
possible, where it may seem desirable to do 
so, to keep the products of which these things 
are made in more nearly their natural form. 
But no cellar or storeroom of food saved for 
winter is complete without a goodly propor- 
tion of pickles, preserves and jellies. They 
add very greatly to the variety and the zest 
of the winter diet, and should be provided for 
in planning the summer's campaign for food 
saving, just as much so as vegetables and 
fruit for canning and drying. 

WHY PICKLES, PRESERVES OR JELLIES **KEEP'' 

As already explained, vegetables and fruits 
^^ spoil" as the result of the presence of cer- 

119 



120 Save It for Winter 

tain vegetable bacteria or molds or yeasts, 
which begin to attack them soon, sometimes 
within a few hours, after they have been har- 
vested or are fully matured. Among the sev- 
eral conditions which make it impossible for 
the bacteria or molds to exist, is a surplus 
amount of acid or sugar. In pickles, the acid 
or saline condition of the product keeps them 
safe from attack. In preserves, the surplus 
of sugar accomplishes the same purpose. 
Most of the jellies are too acid to afford fa- 
vorable conditions to bacteria. The molds 
which might develop upon them have to have 
for their existence a continuous and abundant 
supply of oxygen, so that if they are sealed 
tightly or covered with paraffin they are safe 
from attack because the supply of oxygen is 
shut off. 

WHEN TO GET AND USE PRODUCTS MEANT FOR 
PICKLING, PRESERVING OR JELLIES 

In the chapters on canning, drying and 
storing, the necessity for getting the products 
while young and tender was emphasized. All 



Pickles, Preserves and Jellies 121 

that was said there applies equally to vege- 
tables or fruits meant for pickling. For pre- 
serves and jellies, however, another fact must 
be taken into consideration. That is, the 
sugar contents of vegetables, and to a greater 
extent of fruits, increases rapidly as they ap- 
proach the stage of the becoming fully ripe. 
If fruits are gathered too green the sugar 
content is low and both the keeping qualities 
and the table qualities are affected. 

In the making of jellies, of course, the test 
that is always looked for anxiously is to see 
whether the product is going to ^^jell." The 
reason why it will do so sometimes, and will 
not others, under apparently similar condi- 
tions, is that the ^* jellying,'' or setting or 
hardening of the syrup, is due to the presence 
of pectin in the fruit. This material, like 
sugar, increases as the plant approaches ripe- 
ness — but it again diminishes rapidly as the 
fruit gets overripe. 

Because of the necessity for getting the 
sugar and the pectin in as great abundance 
as possible, fruits for preserves and jellies 



122 Save It for Winter 

should be taken as near the stage of just be- 
coming fully ripe as possible. But to be on 
the safe side, it is best to aim at getting them 
slightly before that period is reached. This 
is a very important point, and one that too 
often is not taken into consideration. Fruits 
for pickling, on the other hand, may be ob- 
tained in a much greener condition; in fact 
for some purposes they are preferred green, 
as they are much more firm and will hold their 
shape better. 

RECIPES FOR PICKLES, PRESERVES AND JELLIES 

The following are recipes for a number of 
the most important of standard pickles, pre- 
serves and jellies. There are, of course, 
many more which can be obtained from other 
sources. No attempt is made here to include 
everything, but the recipes given cover a wide 
enough range to save for winter, in this form, 
practically all of the vegetables and fruits 
usually obtainable either in the garden or at 
low prices in the market. 

Peach Butter: Wash the peaches and re- 



Pickles, Preserves and Jellies 123 



move the ^'fuzz^' by rubbing them with a 
damp cloth, but do not peel them. Place 
them in a granite kettle, add a little water, 
and stew them until they are very tender. 
Kun them through a fruit press or colander 
to remove the pits and skins. Put the pulp 
into a clean preserving kettle and sweeten it 
to suit the taste. Boil it until it is very thick 
and of a rich color, stirring it constantly. 
Pour while boiling hot, and seal at once. 

Note: Peach butter is ordinarily consid- 
ered better if it does not contain spices. 

Caution: Use great care in making the 
butter; stir it constantly and vigorously, so 
it will not burn. 

Pear Preserves: Use the small sugar 
pears, if they can be secured. Wash and peel 
the pears, cut them into halves, and steam 
them until a straw can readily be passed 
through them. Drop the pears into a heavy 
boiling syrup and boil them until they are a 
rich red color, skimming the syrup as often 
as is necessary. A few slices of lemon im- 
prove the flavor. Dip the pears out carefully, 



124 Save It for Winter 

place them in jars, and boil the syrup until 
it begins to jell around the edges. While it 
is still boiling hot, pour it into the jars until 
they overflow, and seal them at once. 

Quince Jelly: Remove the ^^fuzz'^ with a 
damp cloth. Cut the quinces into small pieces, 
put them into a preserving kettle, cover them 
with water, and boil them until they are soft. 
Proceed according to the directions given for 
Apple Jelly, 

Apple Jelly: Wash the apples and cut 
them into pieces without peeling them or re- 
moving the cores and seeds. Put them into 
a kettle, just cover them with cold water, and 
cook them until they are soft and tender. 
Transfer them to a jelly bag and let them 
drain. Carefully avoid applying pressure if 
clear jelly is desired. When the juice has all 
drained out, measure it and return it to the 
kettle. For every pint of juice add a pint of 
sugar and boil together for twenty or thirty 
minutes, testing all the time. When it will 
jell on a cool plate it is done. Pour into jelly 
glasses and cover it with melted paraffin. 



Pickles J Preserves and Jellies 125 

Apple Butter: Use sweet cider of good 
quality, and apples that cook easily. Boil 
the cider down one-half. Wash, peel, quarter 
and core the apples. Then boil together rap- 
idly equal amounts of apples and boiled-down 
cider. If the boiling is slow the apples at 
once sink to the bottom and are liable to 
scorch. After the first two hours, constant 
and vigorous stirring is necessary to prevent 
burning. If the butter becomes too thick be- 
fore it is perfectly smooth, add a little more 
cider and continue the boiling and stirring. 
Add sugar at any time after the stirring be- 
gins if the butter is not sweet enough. Spice 
the butter to suit the taste. 

Damson Plum Preserves: Measure out 
equal amounts of plums and sugar, and put 
them in layers in a stone crock. Set the crock 
in a moderately hot oven and cook the con- 
tents for three hours without stirring. Seal 
the preserves. 

Preserved Cherries: Put two quarts of 
seeded cherries into a wide-bottomed granite 
pan, pour over them three pints of sugar, and 



126 Save It for Winter 

set the pan over a slow fire. Do not stir the 
cherries, but shake the pan frequently as if 
popping corn. As the sugar dissolves, a 
liquid covers the cherries. After about thirty 
minutes, or as soon as the liquid forms, in- 
crease the heat enough to cause simmering. 
Continue the simmering without stirring for 
twenty minutes. Seal the preserves. 

Note: Cherries preserved in this manner 
have a bright red color and a mild flavor. 
Eegulate the fire carefully and shake the pan 
frequently to avoid scorching. 

Preserved Strawberries, — First Method: 
Prepare the berries as for canning. Place 
two quarts in a wide-bottomed preserving 
kettle and cover them with one and a half 
quarts of sugar. Place the kettle over a slow 
fire. Do not stir the berries, but shake the 
kettle frequently as if popping corn. Gradu- 
ally the sugar dissolves and the liquid covers 
the berries. When this point is reached, in- 
crease the heat enough to cause boiling, and 
continue the boiling slowly for fifteen min- 
utes. Place a new rubber on a jar, fill it to 



Pickles, Preserves and Jellies 127 

overflowing with berries and syrup, and seal 
it at once. Proceed likewise w^ith other jars 
until all the fruit is sealed. 

Caution: Strawberries heated thus scorch 
very easily, so the fire must be carefully 
watched. Strawberries cannot be preserved 
successfully by this method if a small-bot- 
tomed kettle is used. After the boiling-point 
is reached, avoid hard boiling ; allow the ber- 
ries to simmer. 

Preserved Strawberries. — Second Method: 
Prepare the berries and a heavy syrup as for 
canning. While the syrup is boiling rapidly, 
drop in large, firm berries until the syrup 
is thick with them but not crowded. Lower 
the heat somewhat and continue the boiling 
for fifteen minutes, or until the berries are a 
rich red color and the syrup is thick. Place 
a new rubber on a jar, fill it to overflowing 
with the berries and syrup, and seal it at once. 
Proceed likewise with other jars until the pre- 
serves are all sealed. 

Caution: Do not cook more than two 
quarts of berries in the kettle at one time. 



128 Save It for Winter 

Strawherry Marmalade: Marmalade af- 
fords the best means of utilizing small and 
overripe berries free from decay. Wash the 
berries carefully and quickly, stem them, 
place them in a preserving kettle, crush them, 
and add three-fourths as much sugar as there 
is crushed fruit. Boil the marmalade over a 
slow fire for twenty minutes, stirring it often 
enough to prevent scorching. Seal it in jars. 

Gooseberry Preserves: Stem and wash 
the berries, put them into a preserving kettle, 
half cover them with water, and boil them 
until they are tender but not until the skins 
burst. Add as much sugar as there is fruit. 
Stew the mixture until it is a rich amber 
color. Seal the preserves in jars or pour 
them into jelly glasses and cover them with 
melted paraffin. 

Caution: Use care to prevent scorching. 

Gooseberry and Rhubarb Marmalade: 
Stem, wash and mash the gooseberries and 
add any proportion of young rhubarb de- 
sired. Place the mixture in a preserving 
kettle, add enough water to cover the bottom 



Pickles, Preserves and Jellies 129 

well, and allow it to simmer slowly until the 
fruit is soft. Add as much sugar as there 
is fruit, and continue the boiling slowly for 
twenty minutes longer. Seal the marmalade 
jars, or pour it into jelly glasses and cover 
it with melted paraffin. 

Caution: Stir the marmalade constantly 
while it is boiling to prevent scorching. 

Red Raspberry Marmalade: Wash and 
drain the berries, crush them thoroughly, 
place them in a mde-bottomed granite pan, 
and bring them quickly to a boil. Eun the 
mass through a fruit press to remove all 
seeds. Measure the pulp and juice and place 
it in a clean granite pan with three-fourths 
as much sugar. Bring the mixture to a boil 
and then allow it to simmer for ten minutes. 
Pour the marmalade into jelly glasses and 
cover it with melted paraffin. 

Black Raspberry Preserves: Follow the 
directions given for Preserved Strawberries. 
Use either method. 

Preserved Pineapple: Peel the pineapple 
and remove the eyes. With a silver fork re- 



130 Save It for Winter 

move small pieces mitil the core is reached, 
beginning at the small end. When enough 
pineapple is thus prepared, place it in the 
preserving kettle, and add three-fourths as 
much sugar. Allow this to stand until it 
forms a syrup. Then cook the mixture slowly 
until the pineapple becomes transparent. 
Transfer to jars, till them to overflowing with 
the boiling syrup, and seal them immediately. 

Grape Jelly: Wash the bunches thor- 
oughly, remove the fruit from the stems, put 
the grapes into a preserving kettle, add a 
little water, and boil slowly until the grapes 
burst open and are soft enough to drain. 
Drain the juice through a cheese-cloth bag, 
measure it, and add an equal amount of 
sugar. Cook the sweetened juice in a porce- 
lain kettle rapidly for about twelve minutes 
or until a little of the juice hardens when 
cooled on a saucer, skimming it frequently. 
For green grape jelly the fruit should be 
gathered just as it begins to turn color. 

Rhubarb Marmalade: Put into preserving 
kettle two quarts of young rhubarb cut into 



Pickles, Preserves and Jellies 131 



cubes. Add from one to two quarts of sugar 
(depending upon the desired richness ), the 
pulp and juice of two oranges, and one cup- 
ful of blanched almonds chopped fine. Boil 
the mixture very slowly for three hours, or 
until it has a rich red color. Seal the mar- 
malade in jars or pour into jelly glasses and 
cover it with melted paraffin. 

Note: If desired, two sliced lemons may 
be added ; and the nuts may be omitted. 

Caution: The marmalade must be stirred 
frequently while boiling to prevent scorch- 
ing. 

Rhubarb Conserve: Cook together for five 
minutes two quarts of rhubarb, two and a half 
cupfuls of sugar, and the pulp and juice of 
two oranges ground fine. Add one pound of 
seeded raisins chopped fine and cook the mix- 
ture five minutes longer. Remove the con- 
serve from the fire, add two cupfuls of nut 
meats chopped fine, and seal the conserve in 

jars. 

Orange Marmalade: Remove the seeds and 
slice thin six oranges and three lemons. Add 



132 Save It for Winter 



three pints of water for each pint of fruit. 
Let the mixture stand twenty-four hours; 
then boil it an hour. When it cools add an 
equal amount of sugar and boil it an hour 
longer. Seal the marmalade in jars, or pour 
it into jelly glasses and cover it with melted 
paraffin. 

Note: This makes about twenty glasses of 
marmalade. A little more sugar may be 
added if desired. 

Pickled String Beans: Wash and string 
the beans, but do not break them. Cover 
them with cold water and boil them ten min- 
utes. Drain off the water, and then imme- 
diately pour boiling water over them. Salt 
them as for table use and boil them until 
they are tender. Skim out the beans and 
place them in jars. While the beans are 
boiling-hot, cover them with boiling vinegar 
sweetened and spiced to suit the taste, and 
seal the jars at once. 

Pickled Onions: Remove with a knife the 
outer skins of small silver-skinned onions 
so that each is white and clean ; put the onions 



Pickles, Preserves and Jellies 133 

into a brine strong enough to bear up an 
egg, and let them stand twent^^-four hours. 
Drain them and place them in jars, putting 
in thin layers made up of horseradish, cinna- 
mon bark, cloves, and a little cayenne pepper. 
Heat to the boiling-point a gallon of vinegar 
and a quart of brown sugar ; pour the boiling 
syrup into the jars until they overflow, and 
seal the jars at once. 

Note: In making the seasoning use these 
proportions : Half a teaspoonful of cayenne 
pepper, two teaspoonfuls of chopped horse- 
radish, two teaspoonfuls of cloves, four tea- 
spoonfuls of cinnamon bark. 

Pickled Beets: Boil the beets in water un- 
til they are tender, and then put them into 
jars. Measure out equal parts of good cider 
vinegar and water, and add a little sugar 
and salt. Heat this mixture, pour it over 
the beets while it is boiling-hot, and seal the 
jars at once. 

Cauliflower Mustard Pickle: Divide a 
large head of cauliflower into pieces and boil 
it with a dozen white button onions in salted 



134 Save It for Winter 

water until it is about half done. Drain the 
cauliflower and onions, and add a dozen dill 
pickles chopped fine. To two quarts of vine- 
gar add two cupfuls of sugar, two teaspoon- 
fuls of celery seed, and one teaspoonful of 
mustard seed, and bring the whole to a boil. 
Mix together three-fourths of a cupful of 
flour, a quarter of a pound of ground mus- 
tard, a tablespoonful of tumeric powder, 
and a little cold water; add this mixture to 
the boiling vinegar and continue the boiling 
fiYQ minutes longer. Pour the boiling mix- 
ture over the pickle and seal it in jars. 

Note: This pickle is easily prepared. The 
above amounts make about a gallon of pickle. 

Chow Chow: Chop together two quarts of 
green tomatoes, twelve small cucumbers, four 
green peppers, a small head of cabbage, six 
onions, and a quart of string beans. Let the 
mixture stand in a covered enamel pan over 
night. In the morning put the mixture into 
a pan with alternate layers of salt, using a 
cupful of salt, and reserving enough for the 
last layer. After this has stood twelve hours, 



Pickles J Presei'ves and Jellies 135 

drain it. To a gallon of vinegar add a table- 
spoonful each of celery seed, mustard, all- 
spice, pepper and cloves ; heat the mixture to 
the boiling-point, add the vegetables, and 
cook them until they are tender. Seal the 
chow chow in jars. 

Piccalilli: Chop together a peck of green 
tomatoes, a head of cabbage, eight large on- 
ions, and three red or green peppers. Add 
a cupful of salt and let the mixture stand 
over night. In the morning drain off the 
liquid, add two quarts of vinegar, one pound 
of brown sugar, a quarter of a pound of mus- 
tard seed, two tablespoonfuls of cinnamon, 
two tablespoonfuls of ground black pepper, 
a quarter of a teaspoonful of cayenne pep- 
per, and a bag containing a tablespoonful of 
cloves, a tablespoonful of allspice, and two 
tablespoonfuls of ginger. Boil the mixture 
for thirty minutes, stirring it frequently to 
prevent scorching and seal the piccalilli in 
jars. 

Chili Sauce: Peel and slice a peck of ripe 
tomatoes, and add six green peppers chopped 



136 Save It for Winter 

fine, six onions chopped fine, two tablespoon- 
fuls of cinnamon, two teaspoonfuls of cloves, 
one tablespoonful of salt, two cupfuls of 
brown sugar and five cupfuls of vinegar. Boil 
the mixture two hours, and seal the chili 
sauce in jars. 

Sweet Green Tomato Pickles: Mix to- 
gether one peck of green sliced tomatoes, six 
large sliced onions, and one teacupful of salt. 
Let the mixture stand over night, and in the 
morning drain off the liquid. Boil the mix- 
ture for fsNQ minutes in two quarts of water 
and one quart of vinegar. Drain it again. 
Boil for fifteen minutes four quarts of vine- 
gar, a quart of brown sugar, half a pound 
of ground mustard, a tablespoonful of cloves, 
two tablespoonfuls of cinnamon, two table- 
spoonfuls of ginger. Put the drained to- 
matoes and onions in jars, pour over them 
the boiling liquid, and seal the jars at once. 



CHAPTER VII 

STORING 

The most natural and the easiest way of 
saving vegetables and fruits for winter use is 
to store them. Nature has decreed that cer- 
tain of the vegetables should keep from the 
end of one growing season to the beginning 
of the next, either to renew directly the life 
cycle, as in the case of the potato, or to fur- 
nish protection for and sustenance to the 
sprouting seedling, as in the case of squashes 
and apples. Such perennial roots as carrots 
and parsnips complete the all-important job 
of seed production for the second season. 

Storage can be used successfully, however, 
only for crops of this kind, and only where 
sufficient room and the proper conditions for 
keeping are available. For these reasons 
storing alone will not make it possible to have 
a complete winter larder, and stored prod- 

137 



138 Save It for Winter 

nets should be supplemented by the other 
methods of food saving already described. 
As a general rule, however, where storing is 
possible it is the most economical and the 
most satisfactory way of saving vegetables 
or fruits for winter. 

While, as already stated, the list of things 
which may be saved by storing does not cover 
the whole garden, nevertheless it does include 
many more things than usually are saved by 
this method. This will be seen from the list 
of vegetables which may be saved, given in 
the latter part of this chapter. All of these 
things can be kept for some time after they 
would naturally perish in the garden, the 
great majority of them until well into the 
new year. 

THE ESSENTIALS OF SUCCESSFUL STOKAGE 

There are three things essential to make 
the winter storage of vegetables or fruits suc- 
cessful. First, a product that is perfect, 
sound and not overripe ; second, good storage 



Storing 139 

conditions; third, conditions adapted to the 
product to be kept. 

Important as it is to use only perfect vege- 
tables or fruits for canning or drying, it is 
even more so to have only perfect specimens 
for storing. The product should be sorted and 
graded, most carefully. Specimens that are 
more mature or ripe than the average, or that 
have been cut or bruised even in the slightest 
degree, should be culled out from those that 
are to be kept. These may be kept sepa- 
rately, to be used first, as they will often keep 
for some time without any trouble and are 
perfectly good to use. But the slightest 
scratch or bruise or ''spot'' must be sufficient 
to disqualify anything from the box or barrel 
or bin when they are being put away for the 
winter. In fact, bruises that are so slight 
that they can barely be detected will prove 
a possible source of a great deal of spoilage. 

For this reason it is a good plan to store 
temporarily all things which it is difficult to 
keep, such as hard fruits, onions, pumpkins, 
squash, etc., and go over them again very 



140 Save It foi^ Winter 

carefully before they are put into final 
winter quarters. Even with these precau- 
tions they should be examined occasionally 
throughout the winter, and sorted over at the 
first sign of decay. 

The factors which make for good storage 
conditions are, in general, three : ventilation, 
temperature, and the degree of moisture in 
the air. Of these, ventilation is the one most 
usually neglected, because its importance is 
not realized. It is not sufficient, as most 
persons think, to put the product to be stored 
in a cold or a warm place to be kept. Closely 
confined air, either cold or warm, makes for 
the development of bacteria or mold which 
causes decay. 

The first essential to provide for, there- 
fore, in selecting and making a place to store 
vegetables — ^whether in the cellar, out of 
doors, or in the attic — is ventilation. The de- 
tails of providing ventilation, of course, will 
depend upon existing conditions, but it should 
be so arranged as to be easily controlled. 
Suggestions for providing ventilation for dif- 



Storing 141 

ferent types of rooms and pits for storing are 
sliowTi in the accompanying cuts. 

While the temperature in the storage rooms 
is usually controlled largely by ventilation, 
that alone cannot be counted upon altogether. 
With our modern methods of living, where 
every room in the house is heated and usually 
there is a furnace or heater of some kind in a 
small cellar, it is more difficult to find a cool 
place in which to store vegetables and fruits 
than was formerly the case. Generally, how- 
ever, it will be possible either to devote a 
small room to storage purposes, or to parti- 
tion off part of the cellar space, which, if it 
be fitted up to take advantage of all the room 
available, will accommodate a surprising 
quantity of vegetables for its size. In mak- 
ing a storeroom of this kind there should be 
direct ventilation to the outside, so that the 
room can be shut off entirely from the heated 
part of the cellar except when it is required 
to get things from it. 

A few things require for their keeping a 
warm instead of a cool temperature. The 



142 Save It for Winter 

difficulty in providing suitable quarters for 
these vegetables is in giving them a place 
where the temperature will be even — a con- 
stantly varying temperature is not conducive 
to good keeping. 

A considerable amount of moisture in the 
air is required where root crops and other 
vegetables, which normally would remain in 
the soil, are to be kept. A dirt floor tends 
to equalize the air moisture and keep it nor- 
mal. Where a cement floor has to be used, 
however, soil, sand, moss, or some similar ma- 
terial which will keep the vegetables moist 
without being wet, can be used to pack them 
in. Pans of water set where they can evapo- 
rate will also tend to keep a normal amount 
of moisture in the air. A surplus of mois- 
ture, however, is just as objectionable as too 
little : this is one reason why ventilation is 
important. For a few things the atmosphere 
should be kept as dry as possible. These ex- 
ceptions to the general rule are mentioned 
in the following paragraphs. 



Storing 143 

PROVIDING SUITABLE QUARTERS 

No matter what, or how much, or how little, 
one may plan to keep for winter by storing, 
the best possible place that can be provided to 
keep it should be prepared in advance. Even 
if this involves considerable time and trouble 
and some expense, it will pay to do it; un- 
less that can be done, it will be best to give 
up making the attempt at keeping things in 
this way, as the waste and loss will more 
than offset any saving which may be made 
by purchasing in quantity in the fall. 

In preparing for winter storage, in addi- 
tion to the factors mentioned above, conveni- 
ence and control should also be taken into con- 
sideration. Convenience in putting the vege- 
tables away, however, is not the only thing 
to be kept in mind. They will be wanted 
through the winter months, and while they 
have to be put into storage only once, one will 
have to go to them a great many times to take 
them out. For this reason it will pay to go 
to considerably more trouble in fixing a reg- 



144 Save It for Winter 

ular cellar or storeroom than it would take 
to make a pit outside. Kven where one has 
a storeroom or cellar, however, an outside pit 
is of great value in keeping vegetables 
through the winter for use in the spring. 
Properly protected, they will remain in much 
better condition than in the cellar. If the pit 
is in a sheltered place, potatoes and root 
crops may be taken out in May in as good 
condition as they were put in in the fall. 

In the following paragraphs suggestions 
are given for making or fitting up the vari- 
ous types of places in which vegetables and 
fruits may be stored for winter. 

CELLARS 

In most old houses the cellars were de- 
signed for storing and no changes of any 
great extent are necessary. The ventilation 
is sometimes inadequate. This may be im- 
proved by building a box or hood over the 
cellar window, so that air can be admitted 
in stormy weather and without letting in 
much light if it is desired to have the win- 



Storing 145 

dow open during the day. Another mistake 
is to allow old bins or partitions to remain 
after they have become half decayed and 
make the finest kind of camping place for 
germs and equally good resorts for mice and 
rats. All bins should be renewed as often 
as necessary and kept in good condition. The 
cellar should be cleaned after the last of the 
stored products are moved in the spring, and 
given a good coating of whitewash or calco- 
mine before they are put in in the fall. Every 
square inch of bins, walls and ceilings should 
be dry and clean : this is not a matter of be- 
ing * ^finicky'' but commonsense precaution 
against losing the things you have gone to 
the expense and trouble of putting into stor- 
age. Ideas for the convenient arrangement 
of a storage cellar may be had from the ac- 
companying diagrams. 

In the cellars of most modern houses, little 
or no provision has been made for the storing 
of food products for winter. There fre- 
quently is but one big room, well lighted and 
with concrete flooring, more sanitary perhaps 



146 Save It for Winter 

than the old-fashioned cellar but in many- 
ways not so well suited for the purpose in 
hand. Usually, however, there is space 

enough to partition off a small room to be 
used for vegetables alone, where conditions 

can be controlled independently of the cellar. 
The expense involved in doing this work is 
not great. Eough pine two-by-fours run 
from the floor to the ceiling may be set up, 
leaving a space for a door. Artificial wall 
board or compo board, which comes in strips 
thirty-two inches wide, may be used to 
sheathe these uprights, inside and out. This 
will make a substantial partition with a four- 
inch air space, effectually keeping out the 
heat from the warm part of the cellar. The 
strips of wall board can be bought in any 
length or height up to twelve feet, so there 
will be practically no fitting to be done. The 
door may be made out of the same material, 
nailed to both sides of a frame made out of 
two-by-threes. 

It is preferable to have two windows in a 
storage cellar, even if they are very small 



148 



Save It for Winter 



ones. If they are exposed it may be neces- 
sary to have double sash or a wooden frame* 
or shutter to put over the windows in very 
cold weather. There should, however, be 
some means of ventilation that can be used 




A well-arranged storage cellar. The cool air entering is delivered nea' 
the floor where it can be distributed through the room and find its way 
out of the open pane at the top, carrying with it surplus moisture. Note 
air space under the bin for potatoes and other root crops. The hanging 
shelf not only economizes on room but is safe from rats and mice. 



even in cold weather. A piece of stove pipe 
with a damper, placed in the window so that 
the lower end is near the floor and another 
piece placed in the second window, or in the 
top light of the same window, will aid greatly 
in keeping the cellar ventilated at all times, 



Storing 149 

and the ventilation can be adjusted to suit 
conditions without the bother of opening or 
shutting the sash. 

The cellar should be kept dark as well as 
cool and thoroughly ventilated. A double 
thickness of burlap or some other heavy ma- 
terial can be arranged so that most of the 
light can be excluded. 

Convenience in storing and in getting out 
stored things, as well as the keeping quali- 
ties of the cellar or storeroom, will depend 
largely on how the storeroom is fixed up. If 
there are more than a few bushels of pota- 
toes and root crops to be kept, bins should 
be arranged along one side. If the floor is 
of concrete, they should have raised bottoms 
with a couple of inches or so of space to al- 
low free circulation of air. The size, of 
course, will depend on the amount of stuff 
to be stored. If there is a considerable quan- 
tity it will be convenient to have the boards 
forming the front of the bins held in position 
by cleats so that they may be removed as the 
contents of the bin are lowered. Shelves may 



150 Save It for Winter 

be arranged along the wall or depended from 
the rafters. The latter method makes a way 
of utilizing space which is not available for 
other purposes. As most of the canned and 
dried products will keep better in the cool 
dark room than where it is warmer, a set of 
shelves or a cabinet should be arranged for 
these also. 

It is often the case that where there is no 
cellar space available there is a room that 
can be used for storage ; a small room or even 
a large closet, if it can be used exclusively 
for storage, will accommodate a large quan- 
tity of vegetables and fruit. It should be 
located, if possible, on the north or west side 
of the building — the coldest room in the 
house. If no small room is available, a par- 
tition like that already described for use 
in a cellar, may be put in to make a spe- 
cial storeroom. Ventilation and some method 
of keeping the room dark should be supplied. 
One of the chief objections to using a room 
of this kind is the trouble and the ^^muss" of 
taking things through the house to be stored. 



Storing 



151 



This can be overcome by the simple expe- 
dient of building a small platform and steps 
at the window on the outside, so that the 
baskets or boxes of vegetables may be taken 
in readily through the window and put in the 




Store 
T?oom 



A convenient outside entrance to a cold store-room. If kept dark and 
at as low a temperature as possible, potatoes, root crops and fruits may 
be carried for a long time in such a room. 



barrels or boxes or other containers in which 
they are to be kept. 

The Outdoor Cellar: In some cases, where 
there is no place available that can be made 
into a cellar storeroom, and soil conditions 
outside are favorable, a small outdoor cellar 



152 



Save It for Winter 



may be made for this purpose. If there is a 
deep bank that it can be built into, and light 
sandy soil for excavating, it is a compara- 
tively simple and inexpensive job to make a 



c^I^fst^ 




The combination cold frame and storage pit is very convenient for the 
small suburban place. Used for vegetables during winter and early spring, 
and for starting plants during spring and early summer. 



room that will keep out frost and remain 
cool through summer. 

Storage Pits: A permanent pit on any 
place where a large quantity of vegetables 
are to be stored, or where there is no other 
place available for storing them, is one of the 



Storing 



153 



best investments that can be made. A com- 
bination pit and hot-bed frame will cost little 
more than if it were to be used as a hot-bed 
alone, and give considerable storage space 
that is comparatively easy to get at in all 




Where the soil is well drained, root crops of all sorts may be carried 
through the winter, in even better condition than in tlie cellar by burying 
them in a pit or in a trench with one or two layers of frozen soil, alternating 
with a covering of leaves, marsh hay or straw. An iron pipe or a wooden 
flue should be inserted every few feet to carry off the surplus moisture. 
In extreme cold weather, this may be stopped up with an old piece of bag. 

but the stormiest kind of weather. The win- 
ter supply of vegetables will be well out of 
the way when use for the hot-bed frame in 
March or April becomes necessary. 

The Temporary Pit: A temporary pit for 



154 Save It for Winter 

storing things or carrying over a surplus for 
spring use, in addition to what is stored in 
the cellar, may easily be made. Good drain- 
age is the first requisite. Such a pit may be 
made either in the ground or, where perfect 
drainage may not be had, on the surface. 
Both methods are shown in the accompany- 
ing cut. 

DIRECTIONS FOR STORING VEGETABLES AND FRUITS 

Asparagus: While this cannot be *' stored" 
in the ordinary sense of the word, the roots 
may be stored and the plants started into 
growth indoors in a light warm cellar, or in 
a frame, giving tender shoots during the 
early spring months. The roots should be 
dug up with a good ball of earth just before 
freezing weather, and allowed to remain 
where they are until the balls of earth have 
frozen, when they can be put in a shed or cold 
cellar until they are wanted for forcing. 

Beans: Any surplus of pole beans, Lima 
beans or even of most of the dwarf or string 
bush beans, which get too large, should be 



Storing 155 

allowed to mature on the vines until the pods 
have become quite dry, and then picked and 
stored in a dry place in the sun. In the fall 
they should be shelled by thrashing or break- 
ing up the pods and the dry beans put in tin 
pails or other suitable containers and kept in 
a dry warm place. 

Beets: These may be stored in a cool cel- 




Where a pit or trench alone has to be depended upon, for winter storage, 
it is a good plan to divide the space so that the various vegetables will be 
obtainable when it is broken into at one end. The cut above shows a cross- 
section of a trench arranged in this way. It contains cabbage, potatoes, 
parsnips, and turnips. 



lar or storeroom or outdoors in a pit or 
trench. They will keep better if covered with 
soil or with moss or leaf mold. The latter 
materials are very light and spongy and will 
retain enough moisture to keep the roots 
plump, and are much more convenient to han- 
dle than soil or sand where they can readily 
be obtained. 

Brussels Sprouts : These may be stored in- 



156 Save It for Winter 

doors either by hanging np the plants by the 
roots, or, as is done with cabbage (see be- 
low), better still by covering the roots with 
moist soil, packing the plants in quite close 
together. Part of the crop may be left where 
it grows as it will remain in good condition 
until after the holidays, the flavor being 
rather improved by freezing. 

Carrots: Handle these the same way as 
beets. They should be taken up late in the fall 
before there is danger of heavy frost that will 
kill the tops. The tops should not be cut off 
too close : leave an inch or so of the leaf stem 
and allow to dry off for a few hours before 
storing. They may be left out, to keep for 
a few days, if covered up to protect from 
frost at night. 

Cabbage: This standard winter vegetable 
may be stored either indoors or out. In the 
former case a good way is to put the trimmed 
heads in slotted or open vegetable barrels. 
Or the plants may be taken up roots and all, 
the loose outer leaves trimmed off, and three 
or four heads tied together by the roots and 



Storing 157 

suspended from nails in the cellar rafters. 
In this way they will keep well without oc- 
cupying any floor space, which is needed for 
other things, such as root crops and fruits. 
For this purpose, ordinary corn ties made of 
stout cord, with a wire clamp at one end which 
saves the trouble of tying and untying the 




Well matured cabbage can easily be kept through the winter in an out- 
side trench or pit. The heads are packed as shown, covered with straw 
or marsh hay, and as freezing weather approaches, gradually cover with 
soil. It is important not to put the soil on at first, as this will cause them 
to heat and spoil. 



string, may be utilized to good advantage. 
Cabbage to be stored out of doors may be 
kept either with the roots on, or in the form 
of trimmed heads. The method of packing 
is shown in the accompanying cut. It is well 
to store at least part of the crop out of doors, 
as this will keep in perfect condition until late 
spring, when it will be much more fresh and 



158 Save It for Winter 

crisp than that which has been stored in- 
doors. 

Cauliflower: This delicious vegetable is 
not as easy to keep as cabbage. If brought 
in from the field and stored in a cold place 
just before danger of injury from a heavy 
frost, the heads will, however, remain in good 
condition for some time. It may readily be 
kept longer, however, by placing it in a frame 
or in a cool cellar, covering the roots of the 
plants with moist soil so that growth will con- 
tinue. In this way, small immature heads 
may be saved, and will develop to a surpris- 
ing extent after they are taken up and put. 
away. 

Celery: If there is enough celery to keep 
for use well into the winter, it should be han- 
dled in three lots. (1) That wanted for early 
use may be banked up with earth out of 
doors and covered up with leaves later and 
used as wanted directly from the garden. 
(2) The celery wanted for late fall should be 
stored in a trench outside. Make this in a 
well-drained place about a foot wide and 



Storing 159 

deep enough to hold the stalks up to the tops 
of the leaves. Take up the plants with the 
roots on, and what soil adheres to them. The 
tops and stalks should he dry when stored 
away. When there is danger of severe freez- 
ing weather, cover the trench up with hay, 
a few inches at first, and adding more as the 
weather gets colder. Celery may be kept in 
a trench of this kind usually until after 
Christmas. (3) The remainder of the crop 
should be stored in a cool cellar. The most 
convenient way of handling it is to get some 
boxes, about as deep as the celery is tall, in 
which the celery may be packed away after 
a couple of inches of light soil or sand is 
placed in the bottom of the boxes. The plants 
are packed in the box upright, quite tightly, 
with the roots on the moist soil at the bottom ; 
if the soil seems to dry out, give it a little 
water occasionally, heing careful not to get it 
on the leaves or stalks. In this way the cel- 
ery is kept fresh and crisp and will continue 
growth and blanch thoroughly after being 
put into the cellar. 



160 Save It for Winter 

Corn: While sweet or sugar corn is not 
stored, nevertheless the ears that are in con- 
dition to eat when the first killing frost 
strikes them may be saved for some time by 
cutting and shocking the corn in the same 
way that field corn is handled. The imma- 
ture ears will remain in their eating condi- 
tion for some time; of course they gradu- 
ally shrivel and become tough. 

Onions: These should always be har- 
vested as soon as the tops begin to get dried 
out : if they are left in the ground after that 
they are apt to begin a second growth, and in 
that case it will be almost impossible to keep 
them all through the winter. After being 
thoroughly dried in an open shed or in the 
garden, the tops should be cut off and the 
onions placed in vegetable barrels or in open 
crates. It is better not to put them into per- 
manent winter quarters until there is danger 
of freezing weather. They should be per- 
fectly firm, hard and dry when put away; to 
keep well they should be thoroughly venti- 
lated while in storage. The ordinary Ber- 



Storing 161 

muda or Texas onion crates, which can be 
bought second-hand at most grocery stores, 
are the best and most convenient container 
for keeping onions. A crate holds about a 
bushel, and the crates can be stacked up on 
top of each other. The white varieties of 
onions and the extra large Spanish or Ber- 
muda onions do not keep as well as the stand- 
ard yellow or red globe or flat onions. To the 
former class belong such varieties as Prize- 
taker, Gigantic Gibraltar, Giant Rocca, Denia, 
etc. Therefore any of these varieties that 
there may be on hand should be used first. 

Parsnips: Part of the crop — say, one-half 
or two-thirds — should be taken up for stor- 
ing in the cellar, or in a pit or frame out of 
doors, and the remainder left in the ground. 
In the cellar the roots should be covered with 
soil or moss to retain the moisture and keep 
them plump. 

Potatoes: Even if you have not raised 
enough of your own potatoes for winter use 
it will pay to buy them to store, as they are 
usually very much cheaper in September and 



162 Save It for Winter 

October tlian later on. They keep best in 
a very cool, rather moist, cellar and must be 
protected carefully from light, as this not 
only endangers their keeping qualities but 
makes them less valuable for food and infe- 
rior in quality. When it is necessary to 
keep potatoes where the air is very dry, in- 
stead of allowing free circulation of the air, 
it should be prevented as much as possible 
by placing the potatoes in large boxes (such 
as packing-cases obtained from a store). 
Line these first with several thicknesses of 
newspaper, and make a tight-fitting cover. 
Several days' supply should be taken out at 
each time, so that the box will be opened as 
infrequently as possible. Potatoes that are 
very early may be best kept for future use 
by being buried in the soil in boxes of con- 
venient size. If put down eighteen inches or 
so below the surface in this way, they will 
keep in as good condition as the delicious 
**new potatoes'' that are first ready to eat 
when the summer crop comes in. Potatoes 



Storing 163 

are also one of the best vegetables for keep- 
ing over in pits. 

Sweet Potatoes: The sweet potato is en- 
tirely different in its requirements for win- 
ter storage from the white or Irish potato. 
It should be given a rather high temperature, 
fifty to sixty degrees if possible, and kept in 
a very dry place. The air should be per- 
mitted to circulate freely about the potatoes. 
Onion crates, such as already mentioned, may 
be used for storing sweet potatoes, and if 
placed near the chimney in the attic, will fur- 
nish about the right conditions. 

PumpUns: These also require dry, warm 
storage. They should be gathered before 
danger of hard frost and stored, if possible, 
temporarily in an open shed or other airy 
place where they will be protected from freez- 
ing weather. Leave the stems on when gath- 
ering. The greatest trouble in keeping pump- 
kins and squash arises from bruises made 
when they are being gathered and taken in. 
In spite of their apparently hard shells they 
should be handled like eggs. They may be 



164 Save It for Winter 

put in the cellar near the heater or in the at- 
tic. Each one should be examined carefully 
as they are stored away, and those which 
show the slightest sign of decayed spots 
should be put to one side for immediate use 
or for drying or canning. 

Rhuharh: While this cannot be stored, it 
can be kept for winter forcing in the same 
manner as asparagus. 

Salsify: This delicious vegetable is han- 
dled and kept in the same way as parsnips. 

Squash: This may be stored and kept as 
pumpkins are, taking even more care in han- 
dling them when taking them from the field 
and putting them away. 

Tomatoes: Tomatoes may be kept in stor- 
age much longer than is usually supposed. 
Fruits that have obtained nearly their full 
size will ripen up gradually if packed away 
in a cool, rather dark place. Placed in front 
of a window in the hot sun, as they some- 
times are, they merely cook. All fruit to 
be kept should be very carefully picked and 
preferably wrapped individually in fruit pa- 



Storing 165 

pers such as those which come around fancy 
apples, or in pieces of newspaper. Any light 
piece of paper will do, or they may be packed 
away in crates in perfectly dry dead leaves 
or grass. It is also possible to keep the fruits 
for some time by taking up the best plants 
by the roots, trimming off the surplus foli- 
age and hanging the skeleton plant, with the 
best fruit, up in a dark dry place. The to- 
matoes will continue to ripen gradually for 
some time. 

Turnips: These keep very easily and read- 
ily, either in the cellar or in houses or pits. 
Handle in the same way as beets or carrots. 

FKUITS IN STOKAGE 

Winter apples and some varieties of pears 
keep readily. Like potatoes they may also 
be bought to advantage in the fall even where 
they are not grown on the place. Wherever 
obtained, they should be sorted most carefully, 
saving only the sound and perfect fruits for 
storing. The others may be used or canned 
or dried. Though it may seem a little more 



166 Save It for Winter 

trouble, the safest and best way is to wrap 
eacli fruit individually in a paper wrapper. 
They may then be packed in onion crates, 
which hold about a bushel each, are conveni- 
ent to handle, and can be stacked on top of 
each other. One reason why apples do not 
seem to keep well when placed in a cellar 
with other things is that, like butter, they are 
susceptible to odors from other things near 
them, and their quality is affected if they are 
placed, without being wrapped, near such 
vegetables as onions, turnips, or even pota- 
toes. If they must be placed near other 
things, they may be further protected by be- 
ing placed in a barrel lined with newspaper 
or wrapping paper, with a tight cover. Fruit 
should not be kept where the air is too dry 
or it will shrivel. A temperature of 35 to 
40 degrees is best. If apples are not individ- 
ually wrapped they should be gone over very 
carefully occasionally, and all showing any 
signs of decay should be removed ; if not, the 
trouble will spread quickly and may spoil the 
whole lot. 



CHAPTER VIII 

EQUIPMENT AND ACCESSOKIES 

An elaborate equipment for the home can- 
ning and drying of fruits is not essential. 
If one has suitable containers, it may be done 
with the simplest of utensils — the things or- 
dinarily found in any kitchen outfit. 

While this is true, if one is going to take 
up food saving as a serious part of house- 
keeping — which it should be, for it means 
not only better winter diet, but a very con- 
siderable saving in the year's expenses for 
the table — then, it is important to have some 
equipment especially designed for this work 
— just as important as it is to have a wheel 
hoe in the garden, a gas range, a carpet 
sweeper, an electric iron, or any of the other 
modern contrivances which make for more 
efficiency and less labor. 

Modern equipment especially designed for 

167 



168 



Save It for Winter 



doing the different kinds of work which have 
to be done in connection with food saving is 
important, however, not merely to lessen the 
work of the woman in the kitchen. It helps 
to make results more certain, and makes pos- 
sible the putting up of better products — that 




Don't begin your season's work of canning, pickling and preserving, 
without suitable tools. None of the things shown here is expensive, and 
with care they will last for years. In addition to the utensils shown above, 
a sugar tester v/ill be found of very great use. 

is one reason why it pays, as an investment, 
as well as in the saving of labor, if the latter 
is considered a luxury. Another reason is 
that special equipment makes it possible to 
do more work in the same amount of time, 
and frequently the rapidity with which this 
work can be done will determine how much 



Equipment and Accessories 169 



of what there is available can be saved. Often 
it is a case of putting things np on a certain 
day or of losing them altogether. 

An argument which comes to mind against 
getting special equipment for this work is, 
of course, that it will be used for only a short 
time in the year, and, therefore, is expensive. 
If, however, the cost of such special equip- 
ment as will be required is figured out on a 
business basis, as it should be, it will be found 
to be very reasonable, considering the ad- 
vantages gained. If well cared for, a drying 
or canning equipment will last for a great 
many years— ten at least. Twenty per cent, 
of the cost price, therefore, is a very gener- 
ous allowance to make for depreciation and 
interest on the original cost. Even on this 
basis, the yearly charge for a twenty-five dol- 
lar outfit would be only five dollars a year. 
The saving in work and in materials, and in 
the additional amount of products which it 
is possible to put up with a suitable equip- 
ment, even for a small family, will very 
quickly equal this sum of money. 



170 



Save It for Winter 



GENEKAL EQUIPMENT 

First of all, of course, comes the question 
of a stove. Any ordinary cooking stove will 
answer all purposes; but if this is 
supplemented by a gas range, it will 
add greatly to the convenience. There 
should be a generous supply of water. 
A modem enameled sink will also 
aid very much, as this can be kept so 
clean that much of the work which 
would otherwise be done in pans or 
kettles may be done in it. A special 
dish-pan, kept for peeling; knives and 
spoons ; a measuring 
cup; pots of different 
sizes, including one 
large one (five gallons 
or so), for syrup; a 
wire basket for strain- 
ing; a colander; scales, 
and cloths for hand- 
ling hot bottles and so 
forth, are among the essentials. 

To these, there may well be added, if more 




Lifter which can be made 
from a cake turner to lift jars 
and cans from sterilizer. 



Equipment and Accessories 171 



than a few cans are to be put up, most of the 
following: a saccharometer or sngar tester, 
which can be bought for about a dollar; a 
good cooking thermometer, 
suitable for use in hot liquids 
—(both of these can be ob- 
tained at most drugstores and 
the latter, especially, is quite 
essential) ; a jar-filling funnel; 
and a jar lifter. 

Where much food is to be 
put up, a slicing machine will 
be found one of the most use- 
ful things that can be had. Of 

Another type of ^OUrSC, thlS wlll oftCU bC of 

jar lifter, (i^or il- ^ 7 

KnnV'seet Hsc for Ordinary purposes, 

lustration facing 

page 44.) ^j^^^ ^f q^qq tricd, Will DC cou- 

sidered more of a necessity than a luxury. 
While an ordinary adjustable knife or sauer- 
kraut slicer can be used, a rotary slicer will 
be found very much more effective. Where 
a large quantity of potatoes are to be put 
^p_and where they can be bought cheap in 
the fall— it will pay to dry them if there is 




172 



Save It for Winter 



not any method of storing them otherwise; 
and for this a potato-peeler may be used to 
great advantage. 
This, like the slic- 
er, will be of nse 





Funnel for filling jars or cans. 
(For illustration of funnel in 
use, see illustration facing page 
60.) 



Handy pail colander for dipping 
and blanching products before can- 
ning, also for removing glass jars 
from sterilizer. 



not only during the drying and canning sea- 
son but throughout the year. 



CONTAINEKS 

Of course, the question of containers in 
which to keep fruits and vegetables, either 
canned, dried or in storage, is one of the most 
important phases of the whole matter of sav- 
ing food. While there is something of an 
infinite variety of containers, they may be 



Equipment and Accessories 173 

classified into jars, cans, crocks, cartons, 
bags, barrels and crates. 

For home nse, probably glass jars are em- 
ployed more than anything else. They are 
adapted to the keeping of both canned goods 
and dried products. For general purposes 
they are, perhaps, better than anything else. 
The objections to them are : the expense, the 
inconvenience in storing them and in moving, 
and the admission of light to the products put 
up, which is objectionable in some cases. 
Where green glass is used, however, in their 
manufacturing, the latter difficulty is largely 
overcome. Each jar, of course, may be 
wrapped in paper to keep out the light. 

Crocks and cartons are suitable for keep- 
ing pickles, jellies, preserves, jams and dried 
products, all of which, of course, are less 
liquid than the ordinary canned fruits or 
vegetables and are naturally more resistant 
to the attacks of bacteria. Bags, especially 
if they have been waxed, are suitable for 
keeping dried products. The most conveni- 
ent way of using them usually, however, is to 



174 Save It for Winter 

keep a number of them in air-tight cans or in 
covered crocks, thus protecting them from 
moisture and from attacks by mice. 

Barrels and crates of various types are 
suitable for the storing of vegetables in the 
cellar or storeroom, or for convenience, even 
where they are kept in pits or outdoor frames. 
Some of the different types will be found il- 
lustrated on pages 147 and 151. 

The different types of jars, cans and paper 
cartons are described more fully under the 
equipment for canning and for drying. 

FOR CANNING AND FOR PICKLES AND PRESERVES 

For keeping vegetables or fruits by any 
of the above methods, of course, the two im- 
portant things are the preparation or steril- 
ization, and a container which will keep the 
food sterile after it is prepared. In modern 
methods, however, the container, in which the 
product is packed cold, is used before the 
sterilizing apparatus and, therefore, de- 
scribed first. 



Equipment and Accessories 175 



There are several distinct types of both 
glass jars and tin cans. For most of the 
home uses, jars are to be preferred to cans. 
"While the original cost is more, they can be 
used repeatedly, the appearance is more at- 





There are several good types of jars and cans on the market. The shape 
and size should be chosen to accommodate the product which is to be put 
up. Wide-mouth jars and "sanitary top" cans are the most satisfactory 
for most purposes. 

tractive and the flavor is likely to be better. 
Jars differ in shape and in the method by 
which the cover or cap is held in place, after 
the contents has been processed. Wide- 
mouthed jars are of advantage for most 



176 Save It for Winter 

things, but particularly so for putting up 
whole fruits or vegetables, such as tomatoes 
or whole corn on the cob and so forth; they 
are easier to fill, easier to remove the con- 
tents from in good condition, and easier to 
wash. 

The majority of jars on the market are 
sealed by means of a rubber ring between 
the glass and the cap, which may be of glass, 
porcelain, or enameled metal. Both the qual- 
ity of the rubber ring used and the evenness 
and surface finish of the glass and of the 
cover will affect the efficiency of the ''seaP' 
obtained. A leaky jar, no matter how small 
the leak may be, will eventually spoil. In 
one of the most modern types of jars, the rub- 
ber ring is dispensed with entirely, the seal 
being obtained by the use of a composition 
sealing material, which comes already applied 
to an enameled lid, and is automatically 
melted and set in the processing and cooling 
of the jars. The cooling of the product inside 
of the jars creates a vacuum which holds the 
lid in place. The old-fashioned screw-top 
Mason jar has very largely been replaced by 




;,— Cast iron steam pressure cooker, lor use witli pressure up to 30 pounds. 1)— Alu- 
niinuni pressure cooker, much lifrhter and more convenient to handle. 




\ "water seal" canner, which will give a higher and steadier temperature than 
open kettle, a— container, with outer and inner wall; b— cover, with thermometer; 
f — rack for hfting jars or cans in and out. 



Equipment and Accessories 177 

this type and by jars with the lid held in place 
by a clamp instead of a metal screw-band. 

Whatever type of jar is used, it is false 
economy to buy a cheap jar which is not made 




A hand machine for putting on cork-Uned metal-sealed caps. With one 
of these machines, bottles of all kinds can be utilized for pickles and pre- 
serves. The caps can be bought in assorted sizes, and a neat, tight, easy 
job is made ot seahng. 



of the best materials or is not accurately 
made. 

Of tin cans there are three main types: 
those sealed with solder, and known as 



178 



Save It for Winter 



'^solder top" cans; those on which the covers 
are sealed mechanically, known as ** sani- 
tary'' cans; and those with covers sealed on 
by means of hot sealing-wax, known as 
**wax" tops. The latter have not been as 
satisfactory for general purposes, although 
suitable for acid vegetables and fruits. 

Some fruits and vegetables which are par- 
ticularly acid should be put in cans known 
as ^^ enameled''; these have a coating on the 
inside which prevents, to some extent, the 
action of the acid of the product on the tin. 

Cans are sold under standard sizes, as num- 
bers 1, 2, 21/^, and so forth; the size and ca- 
pacity corresponding to these numbers are as 
follows : 



THE CAPACITY AND DIMENSIONS OF STANDARD- 
SIZED CANS 



Sanitary 


Solder-Top 


Number 


Height 


Diameter 


Capacity 


Height 


Diameter 


1 

2 

3 
10 


4 

411/16 

5 

6 15/16 


2 3/8 

3 3/8 
4 

4 1/4 
6 1/8 


11.6 
21.3 
31.2 
35.0 
107.0 


4 

4 9/16 

4 3/4 
4 7/8 
6 7/8 


2 11/16 

3 3/8 
4 

4 3/16 
6 1/4 



Equipment and Accessories 179 



SEALING TIN CANS 

While the work of sealing a tin can, or 
even a good-sized batch of them, is done very 
quickly, once one gets the knack of it, it is 
quite an elaborate process to describe in 




A small hand sealing-machine for medium size (No. 2) sanitary top tin cans. 

print. The following directions are taken 
from Circular No. 158 of the University of 
California Agriculture Experiment Station: 
Soldering Material: To fasten the caps on 
the cans, a ''capping steeV is needed. This 
is a cylindrical soldering iron with a con- 



180 Save It for Winter 

cave end to fit over the cap, with which it 
must correspond in size. Solder-hemmed 
caps are furnished with a ring of solder. 
Their use saves much time, labor and solder. 
The small vent hole is sealed with a 'Hipping 
steel/ ^ which is a small, pointed soldering 
iron. 

In order to make a good union between the 
solder and the tin, the surfaces must be 
cleaned with a '^ soldering flux.'' This can be 
bought ready for use or can be prepared as 
follows: Place about one ounce of zinc in 
half a tumbler of strong muriatic (hydro- 
chloric) acid and leave until bubbles cease to 
come off. If all the zinc dissolves add more 
until a little remains after all bubbling ceases. 
The solution is then strained through a cloth. 
It will keep indefinitely and must be diluted 
with an equal volume of water before using. 

A gasoline fire pot or torch of the type 
used by plumbers is needed to heat the solder- 
ing irons. 

Starting the Torch: The reservoir is filled 
about three-quarters full of good gasoline. 



I 



I 




Soldering iron with self-heating attachment; a liitle more expensive than the ordi- 
nary sort, but always ready for use, and a great time saver. 



Equipment and Accessories 181 

The air pump is screwed into place and air 
pumped in to give as much pressure as pos- 
sible. 

The cocks of the two burners are then 
opened very slightly to allow a very little 
gasoline to flow out and wet the burners. 
They are then closed and the burners heated 
by burning off the gasoline. This process 
is repeated once or twice until the burners 
are hot enough to vaporize the gasoline rap- 
idly. 

When the burners are sufficiently hot, the 
cocks are opened a little and the gasoline 
lighted. The flame should burn with a blue 
color and a roaring sound. The torch is then 
ready to heat the steels. 

Tinning the Capping Steel: The steel is 
heated sufficiently to melt a piece of solder 
instantly but not to burn it. The bottom 
of the steel, both inside and out, should then 
be cleaned by filing off the scale. It is then 
dipped quickly into a little of the soldering 
flux and 'Hinned'' by applying wire solder 
which should melt rapidly and cover the bot- 



182 Save It for Winter 

torn of the steel with a bright metallic layer. 
This layer should extend to about one-half 
an inch from the bottom. The steel may also 
be tinned by filing it clean while hot and 
dipping into a mixture of sal ammoniac and 
small pieces of solder. 

This process need not be repeated unless 
the steel becomes accidentally too hot and 
bums oif the tinning. If the steel is wiped 
occasionally while hot with a coarse cloth 
and dipped regularly into the soldering flux 
when used the coating should last indefinitely. 

Soldering the Cap: The grooves around 
the tops of the filled cans are wiped to clean 
them from juice and pieces of fruit, and the 
caps applied. A brush dipped in solder flux 
is then passed around the groove. The cap- 
ping steel, heated until it will melt solder in- 
stantly, is cleaned by dipping in solder flux 
and applied immediately to the groove of 
the can. If plain caps are used, a little solder 
is melted around the bottom of the steel and 
allowed to run into the groove. Only a little 
is necessary. If solder-hemmed caps are 




OettinK reatly to .seal tin <-an.«. The solderiiit: 'won must 1k' coated with tin. 
a — flux jar and brush for applying same; b — solder-hemmed cap or top for can; 
( — bar sal ammoniae; d — ^soldering iron (for tipping copper) ; e — roll of wire solder. 



» 




First step iu seahiig can; applying the liquid llux to rim i>r (;an. a — capping iron; 
b — head of inner steel, working in handle; c — applying flux to rim of cap; d — solder- 
ing iron. 




Sealing a solder top can. 1. Wipe the juice and syrup from the groove. 

2. Apply cap and wipe the groove with a brush dipped in soldering fluid. 

3. Place clean hot capping steel on can and melt a little solder into groove. 

4. Turn the top steel to distribute the solder. 5. Press down on center 
rod, and raise steel a few seconds to allow solder to harden. 6. After 
exhausting can wipe vent hole and seal with a drop of solder. 

183 



184 Save It for Winter 

used, no other solder is needed. The steel is 
turned a few times to distribute the melted 
solder evenly in the groove and then slightly 
raised while pressing down on the center rod 
for an instant until the solder hardens. 

Tipping: This term means the closing of 
the small vent hole in the top of the can with 
a drop of solder. It is done while the con- 
tents are hot and before sterilizing. The 
edges of the holes are cleaned with a brush 
dipped in solder flux. Very little must be 
used or it will run onto the can and injure the 
contents. After applying the flux, the prop- 
erly tinned and heated tipping steel is ap- 
plied to the hole and touched with a piece of 
wire solder. This causes a small piece of 
melted solder to run to the point where it 
closes the hole and is smoothed with a quick 
twist of the steel. 

Exhausting: This process is necessary 
with nearly all air-tight containers which 
are to be sterilized by heat. It consists of 
a preliminary heating before sealing and be- 



Equipment and Accessories 185 

fore the final sterilization. It results in ex- 
panding the air inside the container and thus 
driving out most of it. When the sealed con- 
tainer and its contents cool, the small amount 
of air still enclosed contracts and produces a 
partial vacuum. If cans are sealed while the 
contents are cool they will swell on heating, 
owing to the expansion of the heated air. Ex- 
haustion is also necessary with jars. If the 
covers are screwed or clamped on, the expand- 
ing air may break the glass. If they simply 
rest on the rubber or other sealing ring, the 
vacuum is necessary to keep them in 
place. 

If the fruit is hot when placed in the cans 
or jars they may be sealed and sterilized 
immediately as the heat will exhaust the air 
sufiiciently. 

For the sanitary cans, full instructions are 
sent with the different machines made for the 
sealing or clamping on of the covers. One 
of these machines is shown in the illustration 
on page 186. 






Sealing-machine for mechanically sealed or "sanitary" tin cans; especially 
good for Canning Clubs, Granges, and so forth. 

186 



Drying and Dehydrating 187 

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT FOR DRYING 

The three methods for drying, as already 
described, are sun drying, evaporating by 
artificial heat, and dehydrating — drying by 
the use of an air-blast — the latter, for home 
use, usually being produced by an electric 
fan. 

Light frames of wood, with bottoms of mus- 




Small metal drier with removable trays for using over the stove. 

lin or fine mesh wire, and made of any size 
which will be convenient for the amount of 
product to be handled, may be used for sun 
drying, but it will be much better to take the 
pains to construct a frame with a glass cover, 
such as shown in the illustration on page 
96, which will protect the product from dust, 
dew and showers. 



188 



Save It for Winter 



For drying in artificial heat, a plain, open 
nest of trays, such as that shown in the il- 
lustration on page 99, which can be either 




Arrangement for suspending trays over kerosene stove for drying. 

set on the stove or hung above it, can easily 
be made at home. A regular drier, which 
consists of a set of trays enclosed in a metal 
case surmounted by a chimney, makes much 



Equipment and Accessories 189 

more efficient use of the heat available. For 
drying small quantities of food of this kind, 
a drier like that shown on page 103, which 




Two small driers for use on top of stove; the type with the chimney, and 
a door to protect contents of trays from dust and ashes is the better. 

is made on the principle of a double-boiler, 
with water between the stove and the drying 
surface, is very convenient, as there is no 
danger of burning or scorching the product 



190 



Save It for Winter 



being dried so long as this water pan is kept 
full. A drier of this kind can be kept in 
use for a large part of the time for saving 
small surpluses of the various garden vege- 
tables, which may be prepared for the drier 
at the same time that the remainder is pre- 
pared for the table. These little savings may 




Paper containers of various sizes and shapes are available for dehy- 
drated products, and for jellies, pickles and preserves. They are sanitary, 
neat and cheap. 

seem small at the time, but in the aggregate 
will amount to a great deal. 

Trays for use with a small electric fan such 
as is commonly employed in the house can be 
made about three feet long and a foot to 
eighteen inches wide. They may be made 
from any light material with a lath or wire 
bottom. If all these are needed at one time, 
place them end to end as shown in the illus- 
tration facing page 100. 



Equipment and Accessories 191 



While bags, tin pails, or other containers 
of this kind may be used for the dried vege- 
tables or fruits, after they are conditioned 
and ready to store, by far the most satisfac- 
tory containers (unless one has a surplus of 
glass jars available for use, which is not 



B 




A simple tool for crimping in the caps on paper containers, so that a 
tight permanent job is secured. A shows the cap put in place by the 
fingers. B, the same after the bottom has been extended. C, the simple 
tool for doing the work. 

likely to be the case) are the prepared card- 
board or fiber containers of various sizes 
and shapes which may now be bought at very 
reasonable prices. They are moisture- and 
light-proof, easy to handle, easy to keep, 
and cheap enough so that the products may 
be put up in small quantities, the advantages 



192 



Save It for Winter 



of doing which have already been explained. 
The method of air-drying is comparatively 
new; and, in all probability, there will be 
small outfits for home use of this kind put on 
the market in the near future. 




Another tool for putting caps on paper or fiber containers. 
EQUIPMENT FOR STORING 

From what has already been said and il- 
lustrated in the chapter on storing, a pretty 
good idea has been given of the kinds of con- 
tainers desirable for use in this connection. 
The mistake usually made is to make no at- 
tempt to secure the required supply of bar- 
rels, boxes, crates and so forth until they are 
actually needed. It is far better to begin 
gathering these during the summer; so that 
one may be sure of having plenty of them, 



Equipment and Accessories 193 

and of being able to select those which are in 
perfect condition. 

An ordinary two-inch auger with which to 
bore holes in barrels and boxes which are 



Table Showing Sizes of the Contents and Capacity of Paper 

Containers 



Always order 
by 

Number 


Outside 
Dimensions 

of 
Container 
in inches 


Capacity 

in Cubic 

Inches 


Average 

Contents of 

Home Dried 

Vegetables 

(Avoirdupois 

Ounces) 


Approximate 
Equivalent 


No. 


Liquid 

Measure 

Size 


of Fresh 
Vegetables 


8 


Half Pint 


21 high 
2f Square 


15 


2 


lib. 2oz. 


12 


12 Ounces 


3 high 
2f Square 


22 


3 


1 lb. 12 oz. 


16 


Pint 


4 high 
2f Square 


28 


4 


2 lbs. 4 oz. 


30 


20 Ounces 


5i high 
2f Square 


381 


5 


2 lbs. 12 oz. 


32 


Quart 


7f high 
2| Square 


55f 


8 


4 lbs. 8 oz. 



used for storing vegetables or fruits will usu- 
ally pay for itself each season it is used. The 
importance of ventilation around the product 
being stored has already been emphasized. 
The ordinary packing-case or box, which can 
be obtained from groceries or dry goods 



194 Save It for Winter 

stores, makes a cheap container of convenient 
size and shape; but, for most things, they 
should not be used unless a generous num- 
ber of holes have been bored in the bottoms 
and sides. Special containers, such as onion 
crates, vegetable flats, barrels, and so forth, 
have already been mentioned. 



CHAPTER IX 

CONCLUSION 

From the foregoing chapters, it must be 
very evident that the matter of saving food 
in the home can be made a very important 
part of the household economy. It is worth 
taking seriously ; it is worth doing carefully ; 
it is worth systematically planning for. 

As yet, the matter of real system in food 
saving has not been very carefully worked 
out. Our canning and drying is done, even 
when it is done skillfully, on a more or less 
haphazard basis. It is possible with a little 
study, however, to plan definitely how much 
and what kinds of food can profitably be put 
up in summer and fall for winter use, and to 
arrange for the growing of vegetables and 
fruits, or the buying of them, with these defi- 
nite aims in view. 

For instance, it is not a matter of much 
time or thought to figure out the number of 

195 



196 Save It for Winter 

days from the end of this year's peach sea- 
son (say, October first) to the beginning of 
next year's (say, July fifteenth). That means 
for nine and a half months, or thirty-eight 
weeks, fresh peaches will be hard to get. If 
one wants canned peaches and dried peaches, 
an average of once each week for that pe- 
riod, it is an easy matter to calculate about 
how many cans of fruits or pounds of dried 
product should be put up. The same with 
beans, or corn, or spinach. Knowing these 
things, in advance^ the work of providing 
them will be much simplified. 

But this is not all that may be done. When 
one has determined what can be saved for 
winter with advantage, the next thing is to 
find a way of saving it with the least trouble 
and expense. 

While work in the home kitchen is practical 
and gives good results, it is not the most 
economical way of putting up things which 
are wanted in considerable quantities, such 
as tomatoes, corn, beans, etc. It is very little 
more work to put up fifty cans of product, 



Conclusion 197 



with suitable equipment, than to put up ten 
with the means usually at one's disposal in 
the home kitchen. 

Cooperation in canning and drying is one 
of the most profitable means of saving for 
winter. 

The American housewife, generically 
speaking, has yet to learn the meaning of 
^'cooperation/^ She has yet to realize that 
she and her friends, by buying together, by 
working together at such things as canning 
and dehydrating, can save a very considerable 
percentage on their table budgets. Merely to 
be called a ^^ saver'' has, until very recently, 
been almost a term of reproach, and con- 
sidered a reflection upon one's ** provider." 

The use of a canning or dehydrating equip- 
ment by several persons does not imply the 
necessity of providing any special organiza- 
tion for that purpose. The grange, the gar- 
den club, the ladies' aid, — any suitable or- 
ganization may furnish the nucleus for the 
purchase of such an outfit. The saving made 
possible by buying supplies in quantity, as 



198 



Save It for Winter 



well as the saving in work, will make any 
time spent in working up an interest in such 
an undertaking a good investment even from 
a pecuniary standpoint. From the point of 
view of social service, and for food conser- 




A large capacity self-contained canner and evaporator combined, suit- 
able for community or club use. This outfit has a capacity of 600 3-lb. 
cans per day, and 3 to 5 bushels of evaporated fruits or vegetables per day. 

vation, I do not know of anything that is more 
important. 



COMMUNITY CANNEES AND DKIEKS. 
MUNITY GAKDENS 



FOE COM- 



More and more the vacant lot *^ movement*' 
is coming to be recognized as a practical, 



Conclusion 



199 



workable scheme for helping food production, 
and employing both idle land and idle time 
to advantage. But a very large proportion 
of the food that is thus produced is lost. 
In connection with the community garden 




A larger outfit, canner, evaporator, and sterilizer combined; with a ca- 
pacity of 6,000 3-lb. cana, or of drying 15 to 20 bushels of apples or other 
fruits per day. 

idea, there is a big opportunity for the com- 
munity use of equipment for canning and 
drying. Outfits of considerable capacity are 
not very expensive. They are simple to use 
and are not likely to get out of order. This 
makes possible their use by a number of per- 
sons; or by an organization paying some of 



200 Save It for Winter 

its members to do the work. The unqualified 
success which the Girls' Canning Clubs have 
had throughout the country is sufficient proof 
as to what may be accomplished in this line 
without very much previous training in co- 
operation. 

A LOOK AHEAD I LESS FKUIT TO BE WASTED IN THE 

FUTUKE 

For generations past the world has pro- 
duced an abundance of fruit and vegetable 
food to feed all of its millions of workers. 
The fact that they have not all been suffi- 
ciently fed is due to our unscientific and inef- 
ficient method of distributing the food after it 
has been produced. It has been a common 
thing — so common, in fact, that it is mostly 
the normal condition — for food to be left by 
the thousands of bushels in the country, 
where those who had produced it could not 
dispose of it at a price sufficient to pay for 
the handling of it, while in the cities the 
poorer classes, for want of food, went under- 
nourished, if they did not actually starve. 



Conclusion 201 



While individuals have been blamed for this 
condition, it has been not they, but our gen- 
eral system of food distribution, that has 
been at fault. 

These conditions are gradually being 
changed, not by the arrest and fining of 
profiteering individuals, but by more intelli- 
gent and purposeful organization on the part 
of both producers and consumers. The newer 
market methods — which keep the consuming 
public informed through newspaper notices 
and otherwise, of the products which are 
plentiful or in oversupply, and at what prices 
they ought to sell — have proved to be a tre- 
mendous stimulation to canning and drying. 
This movement has been the result of co- 
operation on the part of the producers. 

There are hopeful indications in many di- 
rections that the community canning and dry- 
ing idea^ — cooperation by the consumers — ^will 
spread with equal rapidity. It seems likely 
that the very near future will see in existence 
community canning and drying plants on a 
scale large enough to be thoroughly economi- 



202 Save It for Winter 

cal in operation, and making possible co- 
operative buying on a large scale, and tbe 
saving of all home-grown products. This will 
be another tremendous step in the direction 
of the practical commonsense conservation 
of food. 

In the meantime, it is up to every house- 
holder in the country, both for her personal 
advantage and as a good citizen, to adopt, 
either in her own kitchen or as a member of 
some organization, the motto: 

^^SAVE IT FOR WINTER!'' 



INDEX 



Air blast, 91 
Apple butter, 125 

jelly, 124 
Apples, 75, 83, 115, 118, 165 
Apricots, 83, 116, 118 
Artichoke, 62 

Asparagus, 21, 63, 82, 118, 
154 

Bacteria, 6 

Beans, 22, 41, 63, 82, 109, 

118, 154 
Beans and corn, 64 
Beans, Lima, 108, 118 
Beet tops, 28, 68 
Beets, 23, 41, 64, 82, 109, 
118, 155 

pickled, 133 
Berries, 118 
Blackberries, 83, 117 
Blanching, 92 

definition of, 55 

time table for, 118 
Blueberries, 83 
Brine, definition of, 56 

making, 84 
Brussels sprouts, 24, 41, 64, 
82, 109, 118, 155 



Cabbage, 25, 41, 64, 82, 109, 

118, 156 
Can rubbers, preparation of, 

59 
Cans, standard sizes, 178 

tin, 177 
Canning, cold-pack method, 
52 
definition of, 9 
fruit, 75 

new methods of, 50 
operations in, 58-62 
principles of, 43-47 
time table for vegetables 
and fruits, 82, 83 
Carrots, 26, 41, 64, 82, 110, 

118, 156 
Cauliflower, 27, 41, 64, 82, 

110, 118, 158 
Cauliflower mustard pickle, 

134 
Celeriac, 110, 118 
Celery, 27, 41, 118, 158 
Cellars, 144-152 
Cherries, 78, 83, 116, 118 

preserved, 125 
Chinese cabbage, 28, 68 
Chow chow, 135 



203 



204 



Index 



Cold-pack method of can- 
ning, 52 

Community canners and dry- 
ers, 198 

Containers, 94, 172 

Cooperative canning and 
drying, 196 

Corn, 64, 66, 82, 110, 160 

Cow peas, 109 

Cowslips, 28, 68 

Cranberries, 79 

Cream of Tomato soup, 83 

Currants, 83 

Cutting and shredding, 92 



Figs, 83 

Food preservation, condition 
of the raw materials, 
18 
economics of, 1-5 
methods of, 8 
Fruit, canning, 75 

juices, 80 
Fruits, drying, 115 

for preserves and jellies, 

121 
in storage, 165 
overripe, 19 
varieties for saving, 39-42 



Dandelion, 82 

Damson plum preserve, 125 

Dehydrating, 85-100 

by air current, 99 

definition of, 12 
Dewberries, 83, 117 
Dipping, 55, 92 
Discoloration, 58 
Drying, 85-100 

definition of, 11 

frames, 187 

in the sun, 95 

process of, 100-107 

time table for, 118 



Germs destructive to fruits 
and vegetables, 43-45 

Glass jars, 175 

Gooseberries, 79, 83 

Gooseberry and rhubard 
marmalade, 128 

Gooseberry preserves, 128 

Grape jelly, 130 

Grapes, 83 

Green beans, 63, 82, 118 

Greens, 28, 68, 82, 111 

Hominy, 82 
Huckleberries, 83, 117 



Egg plant, 82 
Endive, 82 
Equipment, 170 
Evaporation, 90, 91, 97 
Examination, 107 



Jars, glass, 175 
Jellies, 119 

Kale, 28, 68 
Kohl-rabi, 110, 118 



Index 



205 



Labeling, 62, 106 
Leeks, 28, 112, 118 
Lima beans, 108, 118 

Marmalades, 128-131 
Methods of sterilizing, 47 
Molds and yeasts, 43, 49 
Moths, 101 

Mushrooms, 28, 69, 82 
Mustard, 82, 111 
pickle, 134 

Okra, 29, 41, 70, 82, 112, 

118 
Okra and tomatoes, 70 
Onions, 29, 41, 82, 112, 118, 
160 
pickled, 132 
Operations in canning, 58-62 
Orange marmalade, 132 
Outdoor cellars, lol 
Overripe fruits, 19 
Oyster plant, 34, 73, 82, 
110, 118, 164 



Peppers, 31, 41, 71, 82, 112, 

118 
Piccalilli, 135 
Pickled beets, 133 
onions, 132 
string beans, 132 
Pickling, 13, 119 
Pineapple preserves, 129 
Planting table for vege- 
tables, 41 
Plum preserves, 125 
Plums, 78, 83, 116, 118 
Potatoes, 32, 72, 82, 113, 

161 
Preparing, definition of, 54 
Preserved cherries, 125 
pineapple, 129 
strawberries, 126 
Preserves, 83, 119 
Preserving, definition of, 13 
Process of drying, 100-107 
Processing, definition of, 57 
Pumpkin, 33, 72, 82, 114, 
118, 163 



Packing, definition of, 56 
Paper containers, 191, 193 
Paper bag containers, 106 
Parslev 118 
Parsnips, 30, 41, 70, 82, 118, 

161 
Peach butter, 122 
Peaches, 76, 83, 116, 118 
Pear preserves, 123 
Pears, 76, 83, 115, 118, 165 
Peas, 30, 41, 70, 82, 109, 118 



Quince jelly, 124 
Quinces, 83, 115, 118 

Raspberries, 83, 117 
Easpberry marmalade, 129 

preserves, 129 
Ehubarb, 34, 73, 113, 118, 
164 
conserve, 131 
Ehubarb marmalade, 131 



206 



Index 



Rubbers, preparation of, 59 
Eutabagas, 38 

Salsify, 34, 41, 73, 82, 110, 

118, 164 
Sauerkraut, 74, 82 
Sealing, definition of, 57 
Sealing tin cans, 179 
Soup mixtures, drying, 114 

vegetable, 83 
Spinach, 35, 68, 82, 111, 

118 
Squash, 35, 41, 74, 82, 114, 

118, 164 
Storage cellars, 144-152 

essentials of, 138 

pits, 152 

suitable quarters, 143 
Storing, definition of, 14 

equipment, 192 
Strawberries, 79 

preserved, 126 
Strawberry marmalade, 128 
Sterilizing, methods of, 47 
String beans, pickled, 132 
Succotash, 74 
Sugar syrups, 81 
Sun drying, 95 
Sweet corn, 64, 66, 82, 110, 

118 
Sweet potatoes, 72, 82, 113, 
163 



Swiss chard, 28, 68, 111, 118 
Syrup, definition of, 56 
making, 81 

Temperature for steriliza- 
tion, 49-51 

Temporary storage pits, 153 

Testing, 58 

Time table for canning, 82, 
83 
for blanching and drying, 
118 

Tin cans, 177 
sealing, 179-186 

Tomato, 36, 41, 74, 82, 118, 
164 

Tools and equipment, 167- 
178 

Trays for drying, 188 

Turnip, 38, 41, 75, 82, 165 

Vegetable molds, 6 

oyster, 34, 73, 82, 110, 
118, 164 
Vegetables, amount of water 
in, 86 
planting table for, 41 
quality of the raw supply, 
19-21 

Water, amount of in vege- 
tables, 86 







iilitiili^i 




